


Disruption

by WhataBrat



Category: Naruto
Genre: Angst, Dai-nana-han | Team 7 (Naruto)-centric, Dysphoria, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Gender Dysphoria, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Self-Insert, Trans Character, Trauma, Uchiha Sasuke-centric
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-10
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:48:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 25,036
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26939170
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhataBrat/pseuds/WhataBrat
Summary: In another life, she was a teenage girl about to turn 16.But now, she’s a child.She’s a boy named Sasuke Uchiha who’s traumatized. She’s 7 years old and all alone in a compound. A compound that still held the stench of death. A compound where mother and father died right beneath her knees.
Relationships: Haruno Sakura & Hatake Kakashi & Uchiha Sasuke & Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura & Uchiha Sasuke & Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Itachi & Uchiha Sasuke, Uchiha Sasuke & Uzumaki Naruto
Comments: 45
Kudos: 416





	1. Chapter 1

Her hands scrubbed the floor, the scent of bleach invading her lungs making it hard to breathe. Tears filled her now onyx eyes, furious that the village didn’t even bother to try to remove the blood stain on the floor.

Strange memories swirled in her skull. A life filled with training, pressure, and nii-san.

Now, the thought of nii-san brought mixed feelings, because in another life she watched the show Naruto and knew of his orders.

In another life, she was a teenage girl about to turn 16.

But now, she’s a child.

She’s a boy named Sasuke Uchiha who’s traumatized. She’s 7 years old and all alone in a compound. A compound that still held the stench of death. A compound where mother and father died right beneath her knees and  _ why is she shaking? She should be able to handle this. _

But she can’t because she’s Sasuke Uchiha yet also someone else.

So with tears leaking down her cheeks, she scrubs _and scrubs,_ until kaa-san and tou-san are no longer underneath her fingernails.

  
  


———

  
  


Everything is empty.

The streets are no longer filled with people talking, training, eating,  _ or breathing. _

Even if Sasuke moved to an apartment in canon, she wouldn’t leave the compound. After all, the ghosts must get lonely right? She might be surrounded by triggers that pushed her into panicking wheezes, but if there’s one thing both of her lives had in common it's their stubbornness.

Even if her legs feel weak and her body can’t get up from bed, she’ll prevail. She’ll find a way around it.

Sasuke needed to be strong for the future, even if the timeline twisted because of her actions. Hopefully, she could save nii-san before his mysterious illness stole him forever. Sasuke understood his reasonings for the massacre in her past life, so she’d try to do the same here (even if she dreamt of nii-san’s sword going through kaa-san and tou-san every night).

So her hands bled, her knees trembled, and her body fell to the ground in exhaustion. Pulling any air nearby into her lungs like a black hole. Her eyesight blurred with tears, yet she was content. 

Sasuke was able to push herself farther than yesterday. If she kept this up she’d be Genin level in no time. Her eyes closed for a moment, lazing in the quietness of the empty Uchiha training ground before placing her hands on the rough dirt to push herself up, huffing with a wavering grin. Yes, Genin level was an easy objective to accomplish.

Although, one thing that made her heart flutter in anxiety was the fact that she’d go back to the academy tomorrow. Sure, she was Sasuke, but would anyone notice that she wasn’t him as well? She knew she couldn’t ask for new pronouns so soon because that would reek of strangeness. Then maybe they’d push her into a crazy hospital? She honestly didn’t know if Konoha was majorly transphobic or held resources to change genitalia. 

At that very moment Sasuke decided to vanish those thoughts to focus on the present.

Afterall, there’s no need to get stress lines like nii-san.

  
  


————

  
  


It was surreal to walk into class and see main characters of a manga from her past life. Sadly, they weren’t characters anymore. This no longer was a story for her to enjoy, this was her life now. A life she already knew more about than anyone else.

Surprisingly, she desperately felt like talking to Naruto, to create a friendship so the blond boy wouldn’t be as lonely. Sasuke couldn’t do that though, it’d be too soon to start acting differently. Instead, Iruka talked to her before class, showing worry in his eyes. He asked, “Sasuke, you know if you ever need a break don’t be afraid to tell me,” making her internally smile, because even the teachers she used to have weren’t as kind as him.

Sitting alone helped her nerves. She hoped the notorious fangirls would leave her alone just for today.

Turns out, they did end up leaving her alone. But after a few days they were back to fluttering around her like butterflies.

  
  
  


It wasn’t any surprise that she found herself standing in front of Shisui’s house after school. He was a rather prominent figure in her memories and canon.

The door opened easily, but the dust sent her into a coughing fit. How annoying.

Why was she here? Well, Sasuke hoped there were some scrolls she could read. Shisui was the only person she could think of off the top of her head that might have some. So she walked around, searching for anything of use. And yet there was nothing. Unless...maybe everything noteworthy was hidden? It would make sense considering Danzo likely went through the whole district after the massacre.

_ Danzo. _

She’d forgotten how bloodthirsty she felt towards him.

With the shake of her head, the so-called last Uchiha tapped the walls, stomped on the floorboards, moved furniture around, checked the ceiling lights, and explored the backyard.

How useless.

There was nothing.

Sasuke just wanted to find some sort of information on jutsus she could use in the future. Afterall, she needed to be stronger to fight Orochimaru.

Stubbornly, she tried to pretend that she wasn’t aware of the fact that the snake wouldn’t be surprised by any clan techniques.

  
  


——

  
  


“Teme! I’ll beat ‘ya today for sure!” Naruto shouted, pointing to her as his eyes squinted in distaste.

Ah yes, the infamous sparring match where she’s supposed to beat Uzumaki down on his ass only for him to see into her eyes which were filled to the brim with hatred.

She really didn’t feel like doing this today, nor did she feel like putting on a show about ‘revenge’. Her face twisted slightly in annoyance (which wasn’t pointed towards Naruto, but no one would know that). 

She ended up beating him of course.

A month had passed since she became Sasuke Uchiha, the boy from the cursed clan. It was hilarious that she still felt the need to be friends with the skinny boy in front of her, afterall she was supposed to become a brooding emo.

Naruto wiped dirt off his nose, “I was just going easy on you, y’know,” he mumbled before turning away with a pout. It didn’t even take him a few minutes to run off away from the taijutsu ‘training arena’, all the while Iruka called his name to return immediately.

This was way more depressing in real life than watching the show. But at the same time this was the perfect opportunity for one of her goals.

Sasuke’s voice cut through the commotion easily, “Sensei.”

Iruka cut himself off, looking back towards her in surprise. She was normally quiet, never bothering to talk to anyone in class so Sasuke was well aware this was out of character for her. “I’ll go after Uzumaki, ” this seemed to make him more confused, but she wouldn't let go of an opportunity like this no matter how shocking it seemed to be. “I-I...Okay?” he stuttered, unable to process what he was agreeing to. Ignoring the confused looks all around her, she took off into a sprint after the whiskered boy.

According to fanon Naruto could run away from Anbu operatives, obviously this was false since it took her less than five minutes to find him sulking at an empty training ground near a tree.

Well, here goes nothing.

“...Uzumaki.”

“H-Huh?!”

The normally loud boy fell back in surprise, arms waving around in panic while his face smashed into dirt. She didn’t know why she expected him to be more alert. “...When you move your feet you leave an opening in your left side,” she stated while looking down at his tiny form, crouching down near his messy face.

He turned his head, staring at Sasuke in utter bewilderment. With a sigh she took a seat beside him, tilting her head before speaking once again, “When you move your fee-”

“I heard ‘ya! I heard ‘ya!” he scrambled to sit up right in front of her, still staring at the last Uchiha. “Wait, why are you here?” he raised an eyebrow in suspicion, eyes classically squinting once more.

“I followed you.” yes, the blunt way. That’s how she decided to speak to him.

“...Followed me? Teme, are you okay? You’re acting weird!” he pointed at her, quickly standing up and backing away. Her eyes closed, sighing quietly before looking up at him, “Yeah, I’m fine. I just got annoyed with you always messing up.”

Naruto spluttered, “I don’t need your help!” before stomping his foot. “Stop messing around with me and-”

“I’m not.”

“...Huh?”

“I’m not messing around with you, in fact I’m helping you.”

He swallowed before his voice came out quietly, “He-Helping me?”

Should she be more blunt?

“Tch, I’m helping you. Then we’re going to be friends.”

“...Friends?” his voice seemed to crack, eyes widening in shock making her smile internally. “Yes, now,” she slowly came to a stand, “You need to learn how to actually fight,” her feet moved apart, body automatically falling into a Uchiha stance.

The jinchuriki blinked, mouth gaped open as he seemed to look at her in a new light. Slowly his mouth pursed up, reminding her of someone about to break down into tears, although it didn’t take him long to turn his face away with a sniffle. 

She may be an asshole Ucihiha, but Naruto is a child. A child who’s probably never heard someone flat out tell him they want to be friends. So she let him collect himself, silently watching all while holding back a soft smile.

Soon enough he turned around, looking into her onyx eyes with a large happy grin. His cheeks were flushed, and yet there was no sign of tears, “Yeah...Yeah okay, I guess I could let ‘ya help me!”

  
  


——

  
  


They ended up not going back to class.

Instead, she pushed him around until evening. Lightly teasing Naruto as he tried to master her instructions. Sasuke realized that he really  _ did _ learn better by doing things, and maybe he’d be at her level in class if the teachers weren’t such assholes (although Iruka was better than most people in her books).

Currently, the orphaned Uzumaki stared at her, twirling his feet while his mouth opened and closed.

“Uzumaki?”

He flinched, blue eyes studying her before slowly holding his fist out, “Let’s go get some Ramen.”

He looked so serious she couldn’t help but snort, “That’s your question? Sure,” before putting her fist against his. Immediately he was beaming once more, nodding before walking past her quickly.

“Oh man! I’m so hungry Sasuke,” she moved to walk beside him as he put his hands behind his head.

Ah, the classic anime boy walk.

“Ichiraku has everything! Oh yeah, have ‘ya ever gone before?”

A simple grunt escaped her vocal cords, slowly shaking her head.

“What?! Come on! Come on! I can’t believe you’ve nev-”

He suddenly started sprinting away, all while talking her ear off as she quickly moved to run beside him. Really, it was amazing how much stamina he had.

All of a sudden the smell of Ramen hit her nose like a truck, making her mouth water. In her past life she only ever tasted cup ramen, but it was familiar enough to send her down memory lane.

Finally they stood in front of the infamous stall. Naruto walked inside quickly, her hands stuffed in her pockets as she slowly took a seat beside him.

“Naruto! It seems you brought a friend,” Teuchi was taller than she expected (or maybe because she was smaller) and his smile reminded her of a distant friendly uncle.

The jinchuriki waved happily, “Hey old man! This is teme!”

The owner seemed to straighten up in surprise, “Ah, Uchiha-san. What would you like?”

She looked towards the menu on the wall then turned back to Teuchi, “Miso.”

Naruto nodded, “The same as usual, old man.”

The bright haired child looked at Sasuke, already opening his mouth to talk her ears off. Her elbows automatically rested on the table while she listened to him patiently.

She may not be canon Sasuke, but she could tell this was the start to a lifelong friendship. 


	2. Chapter 2

Nightmares.

They were a normal occurrence in her life.

Some days she could deal with it, always brushing off her shaky breaths to properly train. Other days she could barely focus on anything around her. Her hands shook and her lungs felt all too small in her body. The tips of her fingers grew a pale purple before she had to sit down so she didn’t faint, forcing herself to calm down from panic attacks that happened way too often.

Today was one of those days.

It didn’t help that she was supposed to go to the Academy. Sure, she knew how to hide her panic attacks (even if it wasn’t healthy), but she also knew that smarter kids (for example: Shikamaru) would definitely notice.

So, Sasuke did what she normally did. Which was taking a ‘day off’ and sitting in the compound until she felt decent.

Shakily placing her cereal bowl in the sink to wash later, she took a step outside the house. Her onyx eyes squinting as she tried to focus her mind on taking steps forward, slowly walking towards the unkempt garden that kaa-san used to love.

Maybe, just maybe, she would try and clean it up. Who knows, it could be a good coping mechanism.

“...Hello flowers,” her hand brushed against a wilted rose, frowning softly. “I’m sorry I haven’t kept you well..”

“I know kaa-san would’ve been sad to see her garden in such a state,” she closed her eyes, taking in a nervous breath as she listened to bugs buzzing around. “Yeah, she would’ve been really sad,”

“And tou-san would have lost it,” a chuckle escaped her lips, nodding her head before opening her eyes once more to look around.

It only took her a couple minutes to get shears and a watering can. Moving like a snail, she cut off the overgrown plants then moved on towards watering them.

It took her about an hour just to get everything done. Sasuke didn’t mind. Plants deserve love too, no matter how long it took to get them healthy.

Filling the bucket with more water she washed her hands free of dirt, body less tense than before.

Who knew gardening could be such a stress reliever?

Before she knew it the sound of footsteps echoed in the empty street, making all the panic she just lost come back at full force. Her breathing hitched, automatically crouching down defensively and  _ why is someone here? This is supposed to be a safe space. _

“Heeey, Sasuke! You here?”

Oh my god.

“Man this place looks super run down…”

She took a few seconds to stand up, clenching her fists while letting out a sigh.

She should have known it was Naruto. Afterall, he’s the only one ignorant enough to come here so loudly.

In fact, the boy in question was walking past the main house garden right where she was standing.

“Uzumaki.”

Naruto twirled around, jumping with a tiny squeak, “What the hell!?”

His nervous expression was quick to turn into an annoyed one as he shouted, “What’s your deal with popping out randomly?! Seriously, this is the second time you’ve done this!”

She ignored his question completely while she quickly made herself look calm, “Why are you here?”

“You weren’t in class so,” his face lit up with a grin, “I came to find ‘ya! I asked Iruka-sensei if he knew where ‘ya lived, and then he told me, and then I ran away while he tried to catch me, and then I-”

“Tch, I get it,” she looked back towards the plants while mumbling, “Why did you even bother?”

He raised a brow, face screwed up in thought before looking away shyly, “...Well it’s what friends do, right?”

Her cheeks grew warm, still facing the plants while she kicked the ground. Suddenly the blond boy blurted out, “Were you cleaning your garden? Can I help?”

She slowly looked up, staring into his bright blue eyes with a sigh, “Yeah, I guess.”

It didn’t surprise her when he jumped over the fence like an overgrown monkey.

“Hey hey! I bet I know more about plants than you!”

“Oh really?”

“Yeah! Did you know that plants get food from the sun?”

“I had no clue.”

“Hey, don’t make fun of me!”

____________

  
  


Wiping the dirt off her shorts she walked inside her house. Holding back a whine as Naruto followed her.

She never liked people invading her ‘safe spaces’. It’s always been a bad habit, but they were the only areas she could recharge from being social (even if ‘social’ meant just being near people). Currently, Uzumaki was doing just that. Sasuke wasn’t mad, afterall he didn’t know her well enough to know she needed to recharge from her earlier breakdown.

It just made her uncomfortable.

But in the past she felt safe with certain people in these areas. So she hoped that the Jinchuriki could become one of them.

“Whoa, your house is huge,” he threw off his shoes, looking around for slippers before shrugging and running off towards the table.

Honestly, Sasuke didn’t even know if her parents kept any slippers for guests. She could only remember kaa-san wearing them around, and she wouldn’t  _ dare _ give kaa-san’s stuff to anyone (she didn’t even let herself touch them).

She also knew it was traditional to give tea to guests, but she had a strange dislike towards hot drinks so she never kept any tea bags around.

Moving on from her thoughts she walked over to the fridge, soon enough placing a glass of water in front of Naruto. “Thanks,” he inhaled down the liquid like a vacuum.

“Hn,” sitting down in front of him she cracked her knuckles nervously, making him grimace slightly. “Ewww,” he placed the cup down while shaking his head, slowly laying down on the floor.

For some reason that reaction made her hold back a snort, “You’re not going back to class?”

“Well, you aren’t going either.”

“Fair.”

He turned his body to her, cheeks puffed out, “Do you just take care of plants when you aren’t at school?”

“No, that was my first time,”

  
“What do ‘ya do then?”

“Train.”

His eyes lit up, a grin cutting into his cheeks like knives, “Can we do that?”

Sasuke should have stayed silent. Although, she wondered if this is how nii-san felt around her when she was energetic.

“Can we...chill for a moment?”

A concerned look took over his face, “Oh, you must be sick right? That’s why you weren’t in school, right?”

“...I mean, kind of?”

For some reason this seemed to make him panic more, “Then if you’re sick we don’t have to train! Maybe I could make you ramen…”

Naruto whined, sitting up immediately while pulling at his hair. “Gahh! Okay umm, what did Jiji say about people getting sick? Right!” he moved to run off into the house, pausing and turning around.

“Where’s your blankets, Sasuke?”

“First door to your left.”

It was sweet how quick the young boy scrambled to cover Sasuke up to make her ‘warm’, only to go around the kitchen to find something to make.

Unbeknownst to him, he was making her more comfortable by the second. His doting attitude reminded her of a friend from her old life, even if he was way younger than said friend.

“You don’t need to make me anything.”

“But Jiji said that I gotta do this when I’m sick, so that means I need to do this for you.”

“Who’s Jiji?”

“The old man in the tower!”

“...Right.”

Maybe Sarutobi actually  _ was _ invested in Naruto’s life, but it was hard to imagine. The Third Hokage was horrible in her eyes, and she didn’t think that would change anytime soon. Afterall, keeping someone like Danzo around automatically made him a bad person in her books.

Her house randomly felt suffocating. She scratched her arm absentmindedly before so standing up, brushing the blankets to the side while walking back over to the front door.

“You shouldn’t be moving around!”

“I already feel better, let’s train. I’ll help you out,” she grunted as she slid on her shoes.

He seemed to forget his previous concerns with those words as he happily nodded, “Okay!”

  
  


____________

  
  


He groaned, falling onto his butt while rubbing the side of his ribs. His face was covered in dirt, hair messed up and his all too large clothing seemed to be falling off.

“...That really hurt, ‘ya know.”

Sasuke rolled her eyes, holding her hand out so she could pull him up, “Would you rather I go easy on you?”

“No, I can take whatever ‘ya throw at me!”

She rubbed at his whiskered cheeks with her thumbs, trying to brush off the grime while his skin turned a pale pink at the attention, just standing there nervously as she did her thing. Soon enough Sasuke realized what she was doing and backed away, “That’s what I thought. Let’s try again.”

Shaking his head with a nod he slid into his ‘fighting’ pose, which really just reminded her of a messed up Taekwondo stance. Honestly, she never really paid attention to academy Taijutsu, but if this is what they taught there then no wonder civilians had such a hard time becoming Shinobi.

Suddenly he leaped over, his leg moving into a simple roundhouse kick aiming towards her lungs. She easily moved over to the left, jabbing her pointer finger into his ribs once more.

The young boy let out another whine, his hands immediately moving to cover his sides while she crouched down with her leg pointed out to knock him off his feet.

This clearly wasn’t working. Sure, sparing certainly helped the boy learn how to quicken his response time. But he wasn’t getting better at _ fighting _ .

Sasuke had no clue if she was even allowed to teach him Uchiha katas without unintentionally adopting him, which was quite literally the only reason why she hadn’t done it yet. Plus Naruto was more of a heavy hitter than someone who focused on speed, and the Uchiha Taijutsu was fit towards lanky bodys.

In conclusion, she had no idea what to do.

She certainly couldn’t go up to a teache-

Hands blurred in front of her face as a squeaky voice filled her ears, “Sasuke?”

“Hn?”

“You didn’t answer me for like an hour!”

She highly doubted she spaced out for  _ that _ long.

Nonetheless, she had to study clan laws  _ and _ find someone else she could trust. She may be nervous of everyone around her, but Sasuke knew that letting her paranoia consume her was a bad idea.

Surprisingly, one of the first people to enter her mind was Sakura.

She could remember how smart the pastel haired girl was, even if the show brushed it off later in the series. Maybe, just maybe, she could get Sakura out of that fangirl mentality. Then, could subtly push Naruto and Sakura to have a healthy friendship too.

Yes, that was a good plan.

After that was all done she’d try to find Kakashi. The Memorial Stone should be easy to find, and Hatake was known for visiting graves to cope. She had actually wanted to visit there for a while now, so it was the perfect excuse to accidentally bump into him.

“Let’s try something else,” her voice broke through the awkward silence (she could tell it was awkward because of his fidgeting, but Sasuke herself couldn’t feel it) before turning to walk away.

He blinked, following after her like a duckling, “Wait what? Where are we going?”

Soon enough both of them were standing in front of two trees. Her onyx eyes squinting in thought before nodding.

“We’re both going to try tree walking.”

“Tree walking?”

“Yeah...I haven’t done it before, but it’s better than beating you up.”

He let out a whine as his cheeks puffed out, “Hey!”

Sasuke ignored him, sighing as she brought her hand up to the bark. Honestly, she had no clue if doing this was even  _ safe _ . She was aware the boy had huge chakra conserves, but what about her? Would she be able to do this without doing the classic case of chakra exhaustion?

“You use your chakra to climb up the tree without your hands. Like...walking up the tree?”

She hoped that would make sense. Afterall it wasn’t like she could just show him since she herself had never done this before.

Sadly, this seemed to make Naruto more confused.

“Uh...It’s kind of like using your chakra like glue to walk up? Or when you use tape to tape up a poster,”

“Ohhh,” he nodded sagely, “Why didn’t you just say that?”

Letting a groan escape from her lips she pulled her hand back from the tree, “Anyway, that’s what’s supposed to happen. If you practice enough you could walk on water like Jesus.”

“Who’s Jesus?”

“...Nevermind. I don’t expect us to get it on the first try,” but maybe she would since she had lower chakra reserves than in the future?

Sasuke  _ could _ try to use that hand technique that was always in fanfics. Her hand brushed against the tree once more, pouring chakra to circulate in her fingers before trying to pull away. It stuck for a moment, but easily pulled away when she added force.

Meanwhile, Naruto stood behind Sasuke watching her quietly. His blue eyes looking curiously at her hand before walking up to a tree on her right, then placing his tiny fingers to the bark as well.

Instantaneously the wood around his fingers cracked, his fingers gaining splinters while his mouth let out a yelp.

Straight away Sasuke was standing beside him, gently pulling his hand out of the tree as tears filled his eyes, “Shit, you okay?”

Her nails grabbed onto the tiny pieces of bark, pulling them out of his tanned skin hastily. Abruptly, he let out a loud choked giggle.

The young Uchiha paused, looking up at his tear stained face in confusion.

“Sa-Sasuke…”

_ What’s going on? _

“...You’re actually a nice person.”

What.

_ What. _

She let out a confused noise, pulling her hands away from him as her face twisted up in a disgusted manner. For some reason, this made the bright haired boy giggle even more.

Crossing her arms she moved back towards her tree all while trying to hide her embarrassment, “Tch, just use less chakra next time…”

Naruto laughed softly with a nod, “Okay!”

_  
  
_

____________

_  
  
_

  
There’s one thing they never truly get Shinobi ready for in the academy

That was the  _ smell _ of dead bodies.

No, _ not _ the fresh ones.

She meant the smell of corpses that have been left around for a bit.

She meant when the bodies have started to let out gases and other substances.

She meant when a body had maggots infested in it, wriggling around in flesh like it was a hot relaxing bath.

That’s what Sasuke meant when she said they never  _ truly _ got kids ready for that smell, because even now she can still smell the iron-like tang in the air.

She could still smell the piss and vomit that covered her cousins bodies.

She could still see corpses jerking in movement as the gases escaped their flesh prison.

She could still recall everything like it was tattooed in her mind, forever imprinted and never able to leave.

_  
  
  
_

Maybe that’s why instead of staying to eat at the compound after training, she left with Naruto to go to Ichiraku’s once more.

_  
_ Sasuke would deny feeling ill at the thought of being home alone, she would  also deny that the Uzumaki didn’t make a hole in her wallet because he ate like a  hippopotamus . Seriously, having a tailed beast inside his stomach  _ could not  _ be the reason why _ ,  _ because she’d seen adults eat  the same amount as him, but they were  _ adults  _ and they had  _ larger body masses.  _ He’s a child and he’s eating twice the amount of adult sized dishes.

_ So how the hell was Naruto not shitting himself? _

“You should slow down.”

“Nah! I usually eat this much,”

_ Does he just have massive ass ripping shits after? _

Teuchi let out a laugh as he shook his head, “Naruto’s always been like this. I bet he could swallow a whole mountain and be fine!”

That’s what she’s worried about.

“One more old man-”

Her hand slammed down on the table, “No.”   
  


“Ehhh???” the young Uzumaki looked at her with confusion, as if he hadn’t just eaten four bowls of Ramen.

Sasuke’s grubby hands opened up, showing the right amount of Ryo for the dishes he’d eaten, “Thank you Teuchi-san, but we’ll be on our way.”

“W-Wait! Sasu-” she grabbed onto his warm hand, pulling the young boy out of the food stand.

“Take me to your house.”

“What?!”

“Take me to your ho-”

“I heard ‘ya the first time!” He grumbled, still holding onto her hand as he hesitantly pulled her onto the noisy street. Seeming to become more and more nervous as whispers followed them around. Unlike him, she didn’t mind the whispers  _ as long _ as she was with someone. But she did mind when they gossiped about Naruto.

Hey, making her body positioned in a way so she could glare at people while her friend couldn’t look was completely fine in her books.

Before Sasuke knew it they were in the poorer parts of Konoha. It still blew her mind that Sarutobi gave Naruto such a shitty apartment when his father was the literal Fourth Hokage. She was sure there was at least a good amount of Ryo in their bank accounts.

At this point the young Uzumaki was dragging her up some stairs, hand squeezing hers as he walked along down a hall to a door.

It didn’t take long for her to be pushed inside. Taking off her shoes then walking in slowly to where Naruto stood near his table.

  
  


The whole area was a mess. Garbage layed around, and the sink was filled up to the brim. This place had probably never been dusted before, or vacuumed.

He shuffled, “So uh...Why did ‘ya wanna come anyway?”

She bit back any comments about the state of his living space, “Just wanted to eat some  _ real _ food.”

“What? Ramen is real food!”

“Yeah it’s food, but it isn’t healthy to have everyday,” her feet took her to the fridge, opening it up only to see milk, jam, bread, and butter.

Her hand grasped the milk, turning it around to find that the expiry date had passed long ago. She swirled around, onyx eyes searching for a trash can. As soon as she saw it, she tossed the carton into it.

“Teme! What the hell?!”

“It’s expired,” her hands flew to her hips (she would ignore how sassy she looked) while glaring at the blond, “...Look, I was going to keep quiet about this, but your place is disgusting. You need healthy food, you need new clothes that fit you, and you need to clean this apartment.”

Naruto gaped, blinking nervously while slowly nodding. “I’ll help you. But I’m not going to be helping you forever,” her eyes looked at the cabinets, now not even wanting to know how bad those were inside.

Sasuke didn’t care that she was acting like an older sibling. There was a skinny neglected child in front of her, and she wouldn’t just  _ stand there _ and become another bystander.

No, she would help.

“Right now I want you to throw away all the garbage. I’m going to get groceries,” putting back on her shoes her hand clasped the doorknob.

Sasuke Uchiha walked out the broken down apartment, not planning to come back until she had all the essentials.

  
  


____________

  
  
  


Her hands felt numb yet warm, gripping onto plastic bags as if her life depended on it.

It was insane how long it took her to get to each and every store. Konoha was large, but she hadn’t realized how  _ large _ it was when it took her an hour to find every single thing a normal person living alone had. Hell, she was annoyed since this would probably have taken less time if she was taller. It also would have taken less time if there was a store that sold a bit of everything (like Walmart or Costco), but there was no such thing in Konoha.

Maybe she could make a company knockoff of Walmart?

  
  


...Nonetheless, she shouldn’t have been surprised about the state of the apartment when she came back. Afterall, Naruto was known as the number one unpredictable ninja. There was no garbage in sight, and the main area seemed a bit cleaner. In the middle of it all Naruto stood, his pajamas almost falling off his body because of how big they were.

Wait, pajamas? Was it really that late?

Her eyes swiped over the clock, brows rising with a grunt. Yeah, it was about 10 pm. Throwing off her shoes she moved to the fridge, starting to pile in the cold food that a growing boy would need. Next, she swiftly placed cereals and other items into suspiciously clean cabinets.

“Sasuke?” He mumbled.

“Yeah?”

A soft grin came to his lips, “...Thank you.”

She glanced over at him, “You don’t need to thank me. Afterall, it’s what friends do, right?”

Naruto huffed, his grin widening. “Yeah, friends!”

Placing the plastic bags in the garbage she walked back to the young boy, pursing her lips before slowly reaching over to pat his head.

They also were about the same height, so it was a little awkward trying to pat his head. But if you asked her she would deny it.

She wasn’t the best with words, but she knew how to show affection with actions.

  
  


“I’ll be going now,” she hestiantingly said.

“Y-You can stay! I have extra blankets!” He blurted out.

Sasuke paused, thinking over his offer. On one hand she felt socially exhausted and wanted to be alone, on the other hand she did  _ not  _ want to go back to an empty compound full of ghosts. If she explained her need to be alone while also not wanting to be at home, would he understand? Or is Naruto too young for that? It  _ is _ a rather hard concept to grasp if you’ve never felt it.

Okay, maybe she could twist her needs in a way that’s more simple?

“I’ll stay. Only if you’re not going to...be energetic?”

Wait no, that sounded wrong.

“What I mean is...don’t expect me to jump around. I want to chill.”

Was that any better?   
  


Naruto simply nodded, happiness pulsing off of him like radiation. “Chill...Yeah okay! I can do that.”

She let out a relieved sigh, hoping that he understood she  _ didn’t  _ want him to be ‘chill’ forever, but just right now in this very moment.

  
  


Less than ten minutes later Sasuke sat on Naruto’s bed. She wore one of his shirts and shorts, looking out the window at the dark village, eyes trailing any Shinobi who ran on nearby roofs. She didn’t expect this apartment to be peaceful. She expected being able to hear through surrounding walls or being able to listen to people walking below on the streets. None of that happened though. It was completely silent.

The young boy sat down beside her, blue eyes glancing around for a moment before looking out the window as well. She wondered if he understood that he didn’t need to yell for attention, that now he had a friend who would pay attention no matter how silent he became.

With a sigh she laid down on the squeaky bed, looking at Naruto in curiosity.

Yeah, Sasuke could really see him become someone she could be comfortable with.

  
  
  
  


The first thing Sasuke felt with pressure along her torso.

The second thing she felt was sweat lining her body.

God, it was hot with all these blankets and a body on top of her-

Wait, a body?

Lifting her head, her eyes catched the sight of a familiar bright eyed child laying across her stomach like syrup over pancakes.

Her cheeks flushed in embassrement, now able to remember that older Naruto was seen a couple of times cuddling pillows. “I should have expected this…” she muttered.

“...I headcanoned you to be touchstraved, I guess that’s true,” her hand nervously reached out to gently pat his head, looking around in search of a clock. To be honest, she felt better than yesterday and well rested (and had no nightmares either), so Sasuke was definitely dragging Naruto to the academy.

Speaking of the academy, it was sunny outside and she sure as hell wasn’t going to be late. Her hands roamed the bed, grabbing a pillow and placing it under the boy's head as she slithered out of his grasp, making sure not to wake him up. Her toes curled on his cold floor, pushing a little weight to test the boards to make sure no loud noises would appear. Thankly, nothing happened and she was able to creep to the kitchen.

“Ah, an hour before the school starts,” her hands grasped the fridge door, staring at the clock with a determined nod.

“Breakfast...What would he like for breakfast?”

He definitely seemed to be a carbohydrate type of guy.

So the answer was simple.

“Pancakes.”

Did pancakes exist in Konoha? Who knows.

If it didn’t, then did she just create pancakes?

Her heart throbbed with childish excitement, thinking that maybe she could become a famous chef for making  _ pancak- _

No. Become a soldier first,  _ then _ she could think about becoming a chef.

Sasuke started to quietly hum popular music from her past, a familiar tune of  _ Queen _ and  _ The Beatles _ filled curious air. Her hands moved along elegantly at a gentle pace, stirring batter all while tapping her foot.

She  _ also _ could make music-

No. Bad Sasuke! Keep your mind focused on the food.

After putting batter on the pan she walked back to the fridge, “Do they have orange juice here…? I don’t remember buying any.” She squinted before muffling a groan. Nope, no orange juice here. Suddenly her grubby hands grasped onto another jug, pulling out apple juice easily.

Okay, so they had apple juice but  _ not orange juice? _

  
  


Sasuke was proud to say it only took ten minutes to set the table and make the pancakes. Now, the real question was how she was going to wake up Naruto. Through a prank? Gentle coaxing? Man, it was too earlier in the morning for this. Her past brat brain was taking over, and Sasuke would  _ not  _ let that happen. A normal wake up would be best.

She took a deep breath, tip toeing back into the slightly hot bedroom. There Naruto laid, still wrapped around the pillow and slightly snoring. Her finger reached out, poking whiskered cheeks with a soft hum.

“Hey Uzumaki,” she started to pull the pillow away, unexpectedly making his blue eyes snap open. The tailed beast container let out a whine, squinting at Sasuke in annoyance. “...Why are ‘ya up so early?” He grunted, rubbing his cheeks before slowly sitting up. The scent of syrup wafted into the room, the young boy sniffing around before tilting his head, “What’s that smell?”

“Pancakes. Now get up,” she turned around, hiding a smile as she walked back to the kitchen. “Pancakes? What’s that?” he grunted, placing the pillow to the side and following the so called last Uchiha out. Sasuke pulled herself onto her own chair, picking up a fork while mumbling, “Breakfast.”

In spite of his earlier hesitation, the young boy pulled himself up on the other chair. His eyes widening at the sight of a home cooked meal. “I can eat all of this?” he picked up a fork nervously.

“Yeah, I made it. Eat all you want, or you can save some for later.”

He stabbed the pancake brutally, holding up the whole thing with a fork instead of cutting it, then taking a large bite. She couldn’t help but snort at the sight.

“You’re supposed to cut it,” she started eating her own serving.

Meanwhile, Naruto was in heaven. His eyes were somehow sparkling as he chewed on the sweet breakfast.

“Teme! This is amazing!”

“Thanks.”

“Can you make more?”

“Maybe later, for now eat what you have,” she urged.

He was more than happy to comply with that request.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Btw! There will be no romance between Sasuke & anyone.
> 
> There might be relationships between other characters, but right now I don't plan to add any.


	3. Chapter 3

Sasuke honestly wanted to strangle her.

“Sasuke-kun! Can I sit with you?”

Yeah, Sakuras a kid. But hell, she’s so annoying right now.

“I can move if ‘ya want Sakura-cha-”

Did this world not teach  _ anyone _ about boundaries?

“I’m talking to Sasuke-kun, Naruto!”

Tch, of course they didn’t.

Her hand grasped onto Naruto’s wrist, making sure the blond boy stayed seated beside her. Her onyx eyes continued to look to the front of the classroom, making sure not to glance at Sakura once. She didn’t remember how invading the fangirls were, and honestly she didn’t really know how to  _ start _ a healthy friendship with any of them.

Naruto gently moved from her grasp before taking a hold of her hand in his.

This kid deserved the world.

Sasuke stayed silent everytime girls acted like she was a prize to be won. This wasn’t just a one time thing, no, she did this everyday. The only girl she ever really spoke normally to in class was Hinata, and that was only once during a spar. She had no time for someone who didn’t treat her or Naruto decently, and that was one of her core beliefs.

“Ignore her,” she whispered gently into the Jinchuriki’s ear. He seemed to listen to her, because he became weirdly quiet.

Soon enough Iruka was walking in, holding some papers while greeting the class. His dark eyes circled around easily, hiding a confused expression at the sight of her and Naruto sitting together. In the end he said nothing about it, placing the papers on the desk then grinning. “Today we’re having a quiz,” most people groaned and got back to their seats as Iruka chuckled. “I know I know,” he lifted up a page showing a couple lines with a few photos, “But it’s on Kunai and Shuriken, and we’ve been practicing so it shouldn’t be that hard.”

“So pull out your pencils and put away your notebooks. We’re starting as soon as I say,” The sound of shuffling happened throughout the room. Naruto’s hand became shaky and sweaty at the sight of a written test. “Remember that you can always ask questions!” Iruka gently broadcasted.

She squeezed the boy’s hand, looking at him out of the corner of her eyes. Naruto looked like he was on the verge of crying from frustration. From there on Sasuke decided she’d help him cheat, of course that’s what most people would call it.

Sheets were passed around, most of them kept turned over so no one could start. “Alright, has everyone got one?” Iruka questioned, dark eyes scanning the classroom like a security camera. A mumbled “Yes.” rang throughout the area. The scarred man nodded, shouting out “Begin!”

Naruto shakily turned the page, clenching his pencil as he sneaked a look towards her. She rose a brow while gently smiling, turning over her page as well to silently encourage the shaky boy. Sasuke’s eyes glanced over the questions, internally shaking her head at the basic math questions. Well, basic math questions to  _ her  _ at least. Also there were some safety and theoretical questions, something you could probably imagine on a weapons test. The sounds of pencil scratching invaded her eardrums, making her tune into her test. Then filling up the answers quickly. She debated whether to hand in her test or keep it before helping Naruto. In the end she chose to keep it. Sasuke nudged Naruto on the side gently, making him squirm as his head swirled around. “Uzumaki,” she whispered slowly, having no doubt Iruka could hear her since his poster turned towards them immediately. “H-Huh?” The blue eyed body let out a tiny squeak. “Ask me for help,” she ordered.

“What? Why?” He whispered.

Sasuke grunted, “Just do it.”

“Uh,” his brows furrowed before nodding. “Sasuke, can ‘ya help me with work?” he tapped the first question on the page. She simply nodded while hiding a smirk, then picked up her pencil, “Sure.”

Soon enough Iruka was getting up from his desk and walking over to them, just like she planned.

“Sasuke-kun, are you helping Naruto cheat?” He loudly pronounced to the rest of the class, making everyone’s eyes snap at them like a bullet.

Ugh _ ,  _ she really  _ hated _ honorifics.

“Iruka-Sensei,” Sasuke quietly spoke. “ I haven’t broken any rules.”

This seemed to get an eyebrow raise from him, but at the same time an amused gleam appeared in his eyes. Meanwhile, Naruto was staring at her like she’d grown a head.

“Care to explain?” Iruka prodded with a hidden grin.

“You never said that we couldn’t ask our classmates for help,” she twirled her pencil around her fingers.

The whole room became silent. If a pin dropped everyone would hear it. Hell, she could only hear Naruto breathe.

Then, all hell broke loose.

Loud shouts appeared from every direction, people got up and ran to other’s desks and grouped together. Even Kiba straight up went to the front desk to find an answer sheet. All the while Iruka stood back, not doing or saying anything. After all, it’s Shinobi’s very code to find what’s hidden underneath every single action.

This was how Sasuke Uchiha unintentionally got her classmates one hundred percent on their tests.

Unknowingly, a certain ponytailed boy watched her curiously the entire time.

  
  


-.-

  
  


Sadly enough, she had to go home. Even if she felt like hanging out with Naruto. Sasuke had to do her chores and keep watch on the flowers.

So here she was, taking off her shoes and slipping inside. Silence welcoming her like a harsh hug. She didn’t have television, a radio, or anything to listen to music. She missed music dearly. It took a few seconds, but she realized she spoke japanese, not english. She guessed being merged with another human being made her forget such simple facts, since she had more important things to focus on. Hell, the only time she truly spoke English was when she sang songs, which was why she just thought about it now. A broken bubble of laughter escaped her lips, because she realized both languages felt like her mother tongue.

She knew now she’d never feel like a whole person again.

Sasuke walked past the kitchen, finding cleaning supplies to dust the house. “...Here comes the sun,” she hummed and tapped her feet. Closing her onyx eyes, trying not to think of the first time she cleaned this house, trying not to think about all the  _ blood. _

Ever since that night, she hadn’t been able to go near that room. She understands why she can’t, but in her mind it’s pathetic. It’s so pathetic that someone with her mental strength trembles easily at the sight of a  _ door. _

No.

She had a decent day today.

She wasn’t going to let her trauma control her life.

With hands clenching the broom she intensely dusted every room she could. Putting effort so harsh her fingers cramped in annoyance.

  
  


After about thirty minutes that was all done. Then, she was back in the garden.

The flowers seemed to be doing better. Everything looked more...alive? Sasuke didn’t have much knowledge on plants, so she hoped she was doing well.

“Hello,” Sasuke greeted while her watering can filled. “How are you all feeling? I hope you’re doing good,” her fingers brushed against a petal. Arms shaking while lifting up the now heavy can, sprinkling the thirsty plants. “I won’t stay around like last time. I have to train,” a huff escaped her lips, placing the can down. “I’ll see you later,” she didn’t care how childish talking to flowers were, she was allowed to act her age every once and awhile.

Placing on her shoes Sasuke walked along the street, wondering if she’d have to get rid of the empty houses. Did she count as the clan head now? Or did Konoha control that since she’s too young?

“Heh, young? Yeah right,” she shook her head sheepishly. “They’d probably only control that to control  _ me. _ Afterall, nii-san was only twelve when he...or was it thirteen?” She mumbled to herself, tilting her head back towards the clouds. “The books were a little confusing...I  _ do _ know they pushed back his age about one year though,” her fingers touched her soft neck, swallowing in discomfort. Sasuke really shouldn’t be talking about this out loud, but she didn’t have anywhere else to vent to. She  _ needed _ to get things off her shoulders or else this stuff would swirl in her mind forever. Her eyes drifted down to her feet, pursing her lips with a frown. “I…” she shook her head, finally finding herself in a familiar Uchiha training ground. “I shouldn’t be thinking about this,” her fists clenched, walking towards a wooden post. Slowly, she punched the hard cylinder, not even putting a dent into it. “What’s...the point?” She uttered, eyebrows furling. “What’s the point in merging when both of us are so...so traumatized?” she grunted, punching the post between words. “I don’t get it...I don’t get why this happened, I...I don’t get it.” Tears pooled in her onyx eyes, shaking as her fist sluggishly hit the bark. Her forehead pressed into the punching post, fingernails slicing her palms while her knees trembled. She took a deep breath while trying to hold back her tears, but they _ wouldn’t stop. _ “It’s fine,” she chanted feverishly, silently begging to pull herself together because she’s  _ supposed _ to be stronger than this.

Slowly her breathing became regular, tears stopped flowing down her cheeks, and her body stopped trembling. Sasuke gently pulled away from the post while patting her palms against her shirt, not minding if blood stained the dark old fabric.

“Okay,” she inhaled, “Okay...Train first. Afterwards, make food. Then go over homework,” with a nod her body instinctively slipped into the Uchiha taijutsu stance.

“Good plan Sasuke-Chan.”

Her foot launched out, slamming into the post with enough force to cause a dent.

“Good plan.” She grinned, lashing out at the bark once more.

She didn’t need eyes to know that the post broke into two.

  
  


-.-

  
  


If anyone asked she would deny the fact that she used a stool to cook. Sasuke wasn’t short, but it sure as hell was uncomfortable to move around the kitchen with this height. So bam, a stool. Grasping the bread she easily cut it, placing two slices on a plate before grasping some cheese. Surprisingly ever since the...merge, Sasuke hadn’t been eating a lot of tomatoes. Maybe it was a psychological thing, she wasn’t sure. But now she had a preference towards sweets (which for one part of herself was normal). So here she was, making grilled cheese and wishing there was ketchup. Maybe there was and she just never saw it? Or maybe she could make some later (Sasuke had no idea how to make ketchup, but that wouldn’t stop her). Either way, she ate her sandwich happily.

She grunted, looking at her oily fingers in distaste before touching anything else. Yeah, she wasn’t a clean freak. But she wouldn’t leave fingerprints everywhere and be gross. Placing the plate on the sink she hurriedly washed her hands, blowing her bangs to the side as they fell into her eyes. She needed a haircut soon.

Oh no.

She needed to pee.

_ Ugh. _

This was the part of the day she always hated. In fact she usually tried to hold off from going to the bathroom. Anytime she saw her body it just...threw her off. Sure, Sasuke was born a male. But now she’s here and she feels more comfortable without a dick. In spite of that she’s...kind of okay with not having boobs. Sasuke remembered back pains she’d gotten from those, or how running was always troublesome. Although that isn’t the issue at the moment.

The issue is that she’s going to have to go to the bathroom, pull her pants down, and pee.

It wasn’t just...hatred for the thing. It brought her discomfort. A strange feeling down to her very soul. It felt so wrong, so weird, so  _ alien _ . She imagined herself to look one way, but would glance at herself in the mirror and see a whole other person.

Drying her hands she pushed the stool to the side, slowly walking towards the bathroom in somewhat of a daze.

The best thing for her to do, especially when she felt like shit, was to not look down. Sometimes it was better to look away and remain ignorant of certain sights, but in the end she always knew she’d have to see it another time. In Sasuke's past life she’d never  _ felt _ dysphoria. But now, she knew it. It hung around the sides of her mind, whispering dark thoughts and squeezing her heart like a parasite.

Her tiny fingers grasped the door, lifting up the toilet seat. Honestly trying her best to dissociate through it.

God, it was so  _ uncomfortable. _

Sasuke’s body automatically moved through the motions, washing her hands quickly then leaving the washroom.

Her fingers rubbed at her eyes, blurry vision starting to clear as she made her way to her bag.

“Just...think about something else,” she mumbled, pulling out a notebook and flipping through pages hurriedly.

Right, Iruka assigned work on history.

Konoha’s history was interesting (even though she guessed half of it was watered down, and the other half was probably propaganda). Yeah she knew things, but she didn’t know  _ everything _ . When she thought about it, it was strange no one knew of the Uzumakis.

If you tried to search through the public library you could find records of Hashirama’s wife. She knew this since she did it herself, but she guessed it wasn’t popular knowledge due to the fact that they didn’t teach about it in class. Which was probably why Naruto had no clue he was even in a  _ clan. _ The boy could barely pay attention in class, and there was no reason for him to go to the library anyway.

In the end Sasuke knew she’d already changed the timeline. Who knew if the invasion would happen, or if  _ anything  _ would stay the same. Nothing could be predicted for certain now, and she’d have to venture through this life without expecting everything. That didn’t change the past though, and the past held  _ a lot  _ of secrets.

In spite of her mental rant she couldn’t help but laugh. This history lesson was about the founding of the village, and  _ boy _ she knew a ton about the founders.

“I’ve got to be careful though,” she hummed softly. “Can’t have anyone suspect I might know things I shouldn’t.”

  
  


-.-

  
  


“Sasuke-kun!” The pink haired girl slid into the empty seat beside her, grinning so wide it looked like it hurt.

She happily exclaimed, “Good morning! How are you today?”

Sasuke’s fists clenched, taking a deep breath before simply grunting. This made the tiny girl pause, green eyes opening in surprise. Other students started to pile in, Naruto being one of them. In fact, Naruto was walking towards them at this very moment.

“Do you wa-wanna maybe…” her cheeks heated up as she squeaked, “Eat together during lunch?”

_ Okay, she just had to keep her cool. _

“...Haruno.”

“Sa-Sasuke-kun?!”

“I don’t like how you treat me as if I’m a prize to be won. Please talk to me like a classmate instead of a love interest.”

The whole classroom went silent, and Naruto had stopped walking forward.

Her onyx eyes looked directly into green ones, “I’m not interested in dating anyone. In fact, I would rather we be friends.”

The young girl bit her lip, “...Friends?”

“Yes. Treat me normally, because if you don’t then I’m uncomfortable,” Sasuke turned her head with a slight frown, “Also, stop being mean to Uzumaki.”

A sigh escaped her lips, “Think about it.”

Just like that she got up and walked towards the bright haired boy, grabbing his hand then moving along to a different desk. Naruto stared at her in bewilderment, gripping her hand tightly as they sat down.

She _ really  _ hoped Sakura understood what she was saying.

Naruto whispered, “...Teme, what happened?”

“I needed to be honest with her,” she mumbled quietly.

Sasuke didn’t look when she heard the bubblegum haired girl run out of the classroom.

  
  


During lunch Naruto and Sasuke sat by the ‘famous’ swing, the blond yapping loudly in her ear as she slowly munched on a single piece of bread. No one usually came by the swing since Naruto had ‘claimed’ it.

The familiar crunch of rocks flew by, making Sasuke’s onyx eyes glance around until they landed on the little girl she’d talked to earlier. The whiskered boy clamped his mouth shut, cookie crumbs falling onto his shirt as he grinned.

“Hey Sakura-chan! What are ‘ya doing here?”

“I…” she paused, green eyes staring at the ground before they slowly looked up. “I thought about what you said Sasuke-kun..”

“Hn?” Sasuke grunted, shoving the rest of her bread into her mouth.

“...I’d like to be friends with you!” The red ribbon in her hair gently wavered in the wind, “and I’m...I’m sorry for making you uncomfortable!” Sakura quickly bowed, clenching the fabric of the dress she wore.

Sasuke couldn’t help but blink in surprise, her onyx eyes watching the young girls every move. “You’re sorry?” She prodded slightly.

“Yes, I’m sorry,” she nodded feverishly. “I want to be friends with you! It’s ok-okay if you don’t want to, but if we become friends I’ll be the bestest friend you could have,” she slowly raised herself from her bow.

Sasuke couldn’t help but hold back a laugh at the word ‘bestest’.

Her hands grasped together, green eyes landing on the boy who’d remained silent through this whole ordeal. “Naruto,” she started, “I’m sorry for how I treated you.”

His blue eyes widened, mouth gaping while more crumbs unknowingly fell to his shirt.

“Sa-Sakura-chan..?”

“I shouldn’t have been so mean to you! If you would let me, I'll be the bestest friend to you too!” She bowed once more.

They all became silent. Naruto sat on the swing, completely at shock, Sakura stood bowed, and Sasuke sat on the grass with a hint of curiosity in her eyes. The wind danced around them like birds, and the faint sound of children playing in the distance invaded the area.

Her black hair flew into her face, slowly pushing it behind her ears once she became annoyed. After that her hands clasped together in a formal stance, looking directly at the bubblegum haired girl.

“Haruno,” she started.

The girl jumped, looking up with hope in her eyes.

“I personally forgive you, and would wish to be your friend,” Sasuke hummed as Sakura grinned, “But in the end it’s up to Uzumaki,” her onyx eyes slowly looked towards blue ones.

Naruto spluttered with nervousness, “M-Me?! What d’ya mean?!”

“What I mean is,” she paused, “Do you forgive Haruno and wish to be friends with her? Remember, if you don’t want to you don’t have to.”

“Oh,” he hummed, eyes squinting while rubbing his chin. Sakura kept her eyes on the blond, biting her lip with hope. He stayed silent for a few seconds, and he looked like he was really thinking about what he wanted to do.

Naruto took a deep breath. “Sakura-chan. You really hurt me a lot, but...I still wanna give ‘ya a chance! Let’s be friends!”

She let out a squeal, pink hair fluttering around her happily. She energetically questioned “Really? You mean it?”

“Yeah!” He nodded his head, jumping off of the swing. Sasuke contenly closed her eyes, bathing in happiness both children radiated. “Well, I guess that means we’re all friends,” she slowly got up, tilting her head to let more wind flow in between her hair strands.

Sakura let out  _ another  _ squeal, “Yes! Of course! I promise I’ll be a good friend, I promise!”

“Yeah?” Sasuke snorted, gently pulling Naruto towards herself. “Well you could start by telling Naruto he has crumbs all over his shirt,”

“What? I do?!” He squeaked, blue eyes snapping down with a whimper. “Ah man, did I have those the whole time?”

Her fingers grasped the fabric, ruffling it around to push off the crumbs.

Meanwhile, Sakura was giggling loudly with gasping breaths.

No one was brave enough to say anything when the three of them went back to class, all huddled up at the same desk with mostly large grins.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you @UselessBitch for becoming my beta!
> 
> I've been trying to keep Naruto & Sakura in the mindset of a seven year old, and the only basic reference I have is my niece (who's younger than seven). They're training to become Shinobi so I'm guessing they're all a little more mature than normal children. Nonetheless every child is different and has different mannerisms, so I'm doing my best to showcase it. For example, Naruto is hyper and impatient so he talks fast. Sakura is emotional, so half the time she acts before thinking.
> 
> Of course these characters will mature throughout the years, but they'll always keep little things from their childhood.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you @UselessBitch for looking over my work!

Something was off with Sasuke.

It could have been because of trauma, but he doubted that the so-called Last Uchiha would randomly try and reach out to others. Personally, Shikamaru thought that the black haired boy was moving through grief  _ too  _ fast.

The fact that Sasuke decided to help Naruto with a test was extremely out of character. Well, even if the two orphans randomly decided to become friends before-hand.

But most of his classmates didn’t notice.

Sure, they noticed Sasuke’s random friendship and his speech about the loophole, but they didn’t notice how much he  _ truly  _ changed.

A loud sigh escaped his lips, leaning back in his chair as Choji turned to look at him.

“What’s wrong?” His best friend asked.

“Sasuke’s weird,” he mumbled, slowly putting his head back onto the desk. Shikamaru’s test paper thrown to the side for Choji to use.

“Sasuke?” Choji’s cheeks puffed out as he munched on chips, turning his head to look at the Uchiha. “Yeah, but tou-san said something bad happened to him.”

Shikamaru squinted, “You talked to your dad about Sasuke?”

The young Akimichi nodded sagely, “Of course. Sasuke seemed sad and all the adults were weird around him.”

Shikamaru stared at Choji before shaking his head with a hidden smile. Sometimes he forgot how empathic his best friend could be, and most people forgot about it too.

Nonetheless, his eyes were starting to become droopy. The sound of his classmates yelling easily lulled him to sleep like a baby.

  
  
  


-.-

  
  
  


Water dripped onto the floor as she wrapped a towel around her head. Making sure not to look directly into the mirror. Her fingers brushed against soft fabric, pulling her shorts up before a puff of air escaped her lips. Then she grabbed the towel and dried her hair roughly before pulling the soaked towel away. Finally, she slipped her shirt on.

Sasuke slid the door open, letting steam fly out of the bathroom as she wiped the mirror, already regretting catching sight of her eyes that reminded her  _ so _ much of others long dead.

Loud banging cut through the silence.

She jumped, heart beating a mile per minute while her hand somehow grasped the front of her shirt.

“Hey teme! ‘Ya there?” A muffled squeaky voice questioned.

Oh, Naruto.

She slowly sighed, a smile appearing on her face for a few seconds.

Soon enough Sasuke was opening the front door, “Uzumaki, it’s early.”

It really wasn’t.

“I told you we shouldn’t have come before twelve! It’s rude,” another voice chirped in, causing Sasuke to glance at the side only to see Sakura.

It had been a couple days since the three of them decided to be friends, and Haruno was already fitting in quite easily.

“Ehhh?” Naruto’s brows furrowed before he shrugged, earning a face palm from Sakura.

Sasuke raised her eyebrows in response, shaking her head as stray water droplets flew around. “Teme, did’ya just come out of the shower?” The blond boy leaned forward, blue eyes squinting. Sakura gently pulled on Naruto’s sleeve to get him away from her personal bubble.

“Yes.”

Sakura’s cheek grew slightly red before fading back to normal, “Sorry for interrupting you Sasuke-kun!”

She stared for a second, shaking her head before turning back inside, leaving the door wide open. Of course this sent her two classmates scrambling in.

“Whoa, Sasuke-kun you have such a big house…” Sakura pulled off her shoes along with Naruto, green eyes looking around curiously. “Yeah! His kitchen is weird though,” the bright boy ran off towards the same room he was speaking of. “It’s old fashion…” Sasuke mumbled, waiting for Sakura to follow their friend before Sasuke tagged behind them.

“So,” her dark eyes watched the Uzumaki rummage through her fridge. “Why are you here?”

“Aren’t friends supposed to hang out?” Naruto pulled out a bag of strawberries, plopping one in his mouth before he handed it to Sakura.

“Yeah!” Haruno nodded, a smile on her lips. She already had adjusted to Naruto’s questions, gently pointing out simple social cues the boy didn’t know of.

Sasuke sighed, running her fingers through her damp hair as Naruto tilted his head, “Well, I’m not ready-“

“Then let’s help you get ready,” he cut in with a feral.

_ Oh no. _

The pastel haired girl hummed, “That sounds like a great idea Naruto~”

  
  
  
  


“Hand me a hair tie.”

“Aye aye, captain!”

A small towel hung loosely around her neck, her hands clenched onto her pants as she tried her best to keep her mind off it. Sasuke honestly did  _ not _ imagine today would go like this.

“Thank you,” there was a tug on her hair.

“No problem Sakura-chan!”

Here she sat, a tiny girl behind her braiding her hair on her left while Naruto slowly brushed her right.

There were a few more tugs before Sakura sat back with a loud “Done!”

The Uzumaki perked up, grinning as he pulled the brush away from her hair. “What should we do on my side?” He asked.

“Hmmm…Maybe a ponytail?”

“No! That sounds too easy,” Naruto grunted.

“How about a bunch of braids?”

He paused for a second, then nodded. “I’m getting more hair ties!” quickly getting up, the energetic boy vanished into the rest of the house.

Her dark eyes closed, breathing in as she listened to Sakura move onto her right. A tiny hand brushed through her midnight locks, making her hands unclench the fabric between her fingers. There was... _ something _ about someone petting her hair. It just made her feel  _ calm. _

It…

It reminded her of  _ nii-san. _

Quick footsteps banged nearby, becoming louder and louder as Naruto ran back. “I found more!” he cheered, taking a seat beside Sakura. “Thank you, second in command!” Haruno grasped a tie, already moving to start braiding Sasuke’s hair. The boy hummed, pausing and watching Sakura for a moment. Then, he was braiding along. Sasuke couldn’t help but become more and more relaxed. She felt so _touch starved_ that hands going through her hair practically made her _melt_. Yeah, Naruto had always been touchy, but this was different. This made her want to lay down on Sakura's lap as the girl brushed her tiny fingers through her hair _forever._ A tiny smile came to her lips, eyes lidded at the thought. Sasuke knew right there and then she would die for these two. It’d only been a couple days but they already felt like missing pieces of a puzzle.

After a few minutes both Sakura and Naruto leaned back with happy smiles. “Done!” Sakura chimed, “Now you’re ready!”

“I suppose I am,” the smile slid off Sasuke’s face as Sakura moved to stand in front of her. Even after all this time she couldn’t help but hide her emotions. However, her head kept tilting sideways because of the uneven distribution of braids. “What will we do now?” She probed, watching Naruto stumble beside Sakura.

“We’re going to the park,” he happily announced.

Sasuke softly hummed, closing her eyes as she recalled memories of swinging on monkey bars in bright childish clothing.

He nodded along wisely to her Uchiha-like grunt, “And we’re gonna play lots of games!”

In this life she could only remember playing at the park a few times before the massacre, and during that time she didn’t really engage with others her age. Naruto grasped onto her hands then tugged her up onto her feet, silently protesting at the move. “I’ll teach you guys how to play explosive tags,” Sakura said in a serious manner while she flew over to the front door. Sasuke raised a brow while Naruto’s eyes became huge. He seriously looked like a cat on crack. “Explosive tags?” Sasuke muttered, pulling her shoes while her friends did the same thing.

“Yeah!” Sakura opened the door, letting Naruto walk out first before Sasuke followed through. The bubblegum girl explained, “You have to stay on something that isn’t on the ground because the ground has explosive tags, and someone plays as an enemy Shinobi. You can go on the ground sometimes, but if the enemy Shinobi catches you you’re out!”

“What?!” Naruto stopped, fear creeping up his face like spiders. “E-Explosive tags?! Sakura-chan, that’s super dangerous!”

Sasuke couldn’t help but snort.

It seemed like certain games would always reappear throughout time, even in different universes.

  
  


.-.

  
  


Sakura tapped his leg, finally opening her green eyes with a triumph grin, “Gotcha!”

“Gah! No fair, ‘ya cheated!” Shouted Naruto, blue eyes furrowed while he climbed down from the tree.

“No I didn’t!”

He persisted, “There was no way you could’ve gotten me without seein’ me!”

Haruno groaned while tilting her head back, “I heard you!”   
  


“...Oh.”

Sasuke couldn’t help but roll her eyes, sitting on top of the empty swing set with braids still in her hair. The whole park was empty since Naruto was around, and for once she wasn’t mad. Having a whole playground to yourself is a child’s dream come true. Sakura turned around looking for Sasuke, glancing at the swingset for a second before her head snapped back in shock. “How did you get up there?” She mumbled, Naruto in the background dusting off his pants before eyeing Sasuke. “Did you use the sticky thing?” He grumbled, stomping over to the swing and looking up. Haruno let out a confused noise, “Sticky thing?”

“Yeah,” The Uzumaki nodded, “You use your chatra-”

“Chakra.” Sakura cut in.

“-To stick onto places like glue!”

“Like glue?” She tilted her head, green eyes squinting at the Uchiha before looking back at a tree.

“...The point is to walk up the tree using Chakra, then you can walk up walls, and later you can try to walk on water.” Sasuke couldn’t help but chirp up, hands holding onto the steel bar as her feet gently kicked back and forth. The truth was she just climbed up the swingset normally. She made sure to use her shoes to gather friction and push herself up the pole with upper body strength she didn’t have in her past life.

Silence danced around them for a couple seconds before Sakura walked over to the tree, placing her hand on the bark. She kept it there for a few seconds, then pulled it off. Her green eyes glared intensely at the overgrown tree before placing one foot on the bark. Letting out a grunt she tilted her body to the side, pushing her other foot off the ground.

“What the fuck,” Sasuke blurted out, brows pinched in confusion at the sight of Sakura standing sideways on the tree.

Sweat dripped down her forehead as she glanced at Naruto, “Look, I’m doing it!”

The Uzumaki gaped, eyes wide in amazement while a full blown grin came to his lips. “Sakura-chan, you’re amazing!”

A smirk flowed through her lips like water, staying there for more than a few seconds until she regrettably placed one foot back on the ground. Sakura was slow to walk off the tree, almost scared that she’d fall. But soon enough she was huffing and standing upright, looking at Naruto and Sasuke like they were her whole world.

“How did you do that?” Naruto ran over, grabbing onto her hands as his blue eyes sparkled. She shrugged then laughed, “I don’t know, I just imagined it!”

Sasuke knew right there and then she’d created a monster.

  
  
  
  
  


“Teme, tomorrow can we train?”

“Train? You guys train?”

“Yeah! You should join Sakura-chan.”

Her two friends stood at her door, both sweaty and grimey; and yet they looked happy. Her dark eyes softened at the sight, holding back a smile as she shook her head. “Yes, we can train tomorrow.” Sasuke mumbled, watching as Naruto bounced happily. “Okay! My parents are probably worried, so I gotta go now.” Sakura smiled, pink hair flowing in the afternoon wind. Naruto paused, staring at Sakura with longing eyes before smiling, “I’ll see ‘ya later Sakura-chan.”

“Bye!” She turned around, running away from the property with a grin.

Naruto watched her leave, standing there quietly before he slowly turned, “Sasuke?”

“Hn?” Her onyx eyes looked into blue ones.

“Do ‘ya think...we could have a sleepover again?”

Sasuke felt like she was staring in loneliness itself, but didn’t hold back from shaking her head.

“Not today,”

He looked down, lips pursed up in a frown.

“But tomorrow we can.”

With that simple sentence Naruto rushed forward to hug her, “Really? ‘Ya mean it?” he practically shouted in her ear. “...Yes,” Sasuke gently grasped onto his shirt, the scent of ramen invading her senses.

“Okay,” he inhaled, holding onto her a bit tighter with a content smile. “Okay,” he repeated as he let go, stepping back with a nod, “I’ll see ‘ya tomorrow teme!”

“I’ll see you tomorrow.” Sasuke replied easily, watching the boy she would call her bestfriend dash away from the compound.

A lot of things had happened today and she needed time to process it. Although, Sasuke couldn’t help but look forward to tomorrow.

She slowly closed the door, took off her shoes, then walked to the bathroom. She stared into the mirror, snorting softly. For once she felt okay with how she looked, even if her hair had one large braid on her left and multiple braids on her right. Her fingers slowly slid off the hair ties, watching raven locks fall apart into pieces. The back of her head was still ruffled up, but her front was curly.

“Kaa-san,” she whispered, eyes looking over her childish features, “I really look like you, huh?”

In spite of that she turned out of the bathroom, walking towards her room only to pause. Her eyes caught onto her parents bedroom, a feeling of anguish washing over her like rain from a thunderstorm. Her legs moved on their own, fingers reaching up and touching the door with such gentleness no child should have. Familiar wetness filled her eyes, head tilting downwards with a sniffle. Sasuke  _ missed  _ them. She wanted to feel... _ safe again.  _ Her hand pulled away, easily wiping her tears as she twirled around.

Eventually she stood in her bedroom, wobbly glancing around until her fingers grasped onto a dinosaur plush. She brought it to her chest, lovingly hugging it while she willed a suffocating smile to her lips.

“...Nii-san,” she mumbled.

“How broken will you be when we see eachother once again?”

  
  
  


-.-

  
  
  


The wind felt like needles pricking in her skin.

Spots danced in her vision like television static.

Her lungs burned like acid.

Her neck _ itched. _

  
  


Sasuke awoke with her hands flying to her throat, her heart trying to rip itself out of its cage. Blankets were wrapped around as if she were a prisoner, and her fingers felt all too cold.

She couldn’t  _ breathe. _

Hastily her feet dropped onto the floor, sweat dripping down her forehead as she raced out of her room. Practically tripping on her own feet before her hands threw open the backyard door, knees buckling beneath her while she gasped down fresh air.

Her whole body violently shook, desperately trying to gather warmth. It didn’t take long for her to drag herself to her family's pond, shoving her fingers into the water. This simple action was enough to shock her shaky body back to reality. Sasuke’s mind whirled with wide eyes, slowing down her gasps while she clenched the cool liquid in her hand.

“...Yo-You’re name is Sas-Sasuke Uchiha,” her onyx eyes whipped around. “You live in...Konoha,” she continued to speak to herself. “You just had a-” she choked, “-a bad d-dream..”

“It’s early in the morning...You figured that out be-because you can see the sun rising…”

Her thin limbs started to relax.

“And it’s...”

Hues of yellow, purple, and orange flowed around the sky like birds migrating to the south. Light crawled it’s way onto every surface, morning dew gently soaked her knees, and a faint bird call teased her ears.

“... _ Beautiful. _ ”

  
  
  


Sasuke stared at her eggs with distaste. She made breakfast to munch on something, but with every bite she couldn’t help but compare it to a tasteless jelly. Truthfully after her panic attack she tried to create a sense of normalcy, which meant cleaning and making food to quell her empty stomach. It turned out though, that she no longer liked eggs, even if she liked them in this life?

_ Gah, too much thinking _ .

She tossed it into the garbage, ultimately deciding to make a toast. Eventually her raven eyes glanced out the window, staring into the perfectly blue sky. Sasuke hadn’t checked the time yet, and didn’t plan to. She liked the idea of being randomly surprised by an unruly child slamming open her door with a large grin.

Out of the corner of the window she noticed some bushes shaking, automatically becoming frozen with anxiety.

_ Was it ANBU? Root? Or anyone else? _

A tiny body fell out face first, golden hair filled with leaves and shirt covered in dirt.

_ No, it’s just a dumbass. _

Naurto pulled himself up, glancing around with a firm look on his face. Then a huge smile came to his lips, looking directly into her eyes as he waved. His muffled yet vibrant voice shouted, “Sasuke! Hey Sasuke!”

“Oh my god,” Sasuke tiredly mumbled, watching the Uzumaki stumble back towards the bush. “I’m coming in!” He yelled, vanishing into the shrub. It honestly took less than ten seconds for the front door to bust open, a joyful “Teme!” echoing throughout the house as the sound of shoes hitting the floor flew past her ears.

“Uzumaki,” she greeted as her friend walked into the kitchen. “Good morning!” His shrill voice bounced off the walls like a siren while he took a seat. Tilting her head she reached over for some bread and butter, “Morning.”

“I was gonna come later but I was excited! So I just had to come ‘ere and check if you were awake,” Naruto happily informed her.

“...Which means creeping in my garden?”

He shook his head sharply, “Not creepin’! I was checking!”   
  


“Mhm...” Sasuke nodded along, grabbing a pan and slicing butter on the bread. “So,” he rubbed his eyes, “Whatcha making?”

“Toast.”

“I love toast! It’s so easy to make, _ and  _ ‘ya don’t have to use plates,” he watched her press the bread onto the now heated pan. This made her turn around sharply, “I hope you aren’t letting your house get messy again.” Sasuke nagged. The bright boy gulped and shook his head, “No no! I’ve been cleanin’ and takin’ care of my plants.”

“Plants?”   
  


“Yeah! Since I helped with your garden I wanted plants, so I dug them up and got ‘em.”

_ Uh oh. _

“...Dug them up?” Anxiety creeped into her voice. Naruto didn’t seem to notice though since he simply nodded his head. “I saw another garden so I just took what I wanted,” he smoothly added.

She face palmed, groaning sadly at the fact that Naruto stole  _ plants. _

“Sasuke?” he mumbled, “Are you okay?”

“Yes.” She tried to ignore the previous information, turning back to pick up the toast and slide it onto a clean plate. Soon enough she was sitting in front of Naruto, pushing the plate in the middle of the table then picking up one slice of bread. He seemed to watch her or a second, then glanced down at the plate with a hungry look in his eyes.

“You can have one,” she gently prodded. “Just don’t make a mess.”

He nodded, a surprised look crossing over his face before his stubby fingers grasped the toast at high speed. Sasuke tilted her head to the left, a tiny content smile coming to her lips.

“So, you’ve been awake for a while?” She continued, smile vanishing as she herself stuffed her face with toast. He swallowed, “Mhm. The sun was rising,” he took another bite.

_ Well, that’s a coincidence. _

She simply hummed, easily finishing her breakfast while taking the plate away. Of course Naruto had finished as well. “Oops..” He sheepishly mumbled, wiping away crumbs he hadn’t noticed before stretching with a yawn.

“Do you want to nap?” She questioned softly.

“Nap?”

“Mhm. You can sleep and I’ll wake you up when Haruno arrives.”

Natuto paused, “But I don’t have anywhere to sleep..?”

“I have a futon you can use in one of the..spare rooms.”

Honestly Sasuke wasn’t exactly sure why her parents had so many empty rooms in their house, it was really weird.

Although Naruto easily agreed. “You promise you’ll wake me up?” he suspiciously inquired while rubbing his eyes. She held back a snort as she walked out the kitchen with the Uzumaki following behind, “Of course.”

Soon enough she laid a futon out, Naruto crawling in with a tired smile.

“Night night teme!”

“It’s morning.”

“Oh, right. Morning teme…” Then he turned around and swiftly fell asleep.

She stared, watching the boy breathe in and out. She couldn’t help but be grateful he was trusting enough to even  _ sleep _ in her home.

._.

  
  


Sasuke jolted in surprise as the front door banged softly.

“Haruno..?” She mumbled, grabbing the knob and sliding it open. There stood Sakura in all her glory, an eager smile on her lips. “Good morning Sasuke-kun!” She greeted as she stepped inside, gently taking off her shoes as Sasuke hummed in response.

“Where’s Naruto?”

“Sleeping.”

She paused, “Sleeping..?”

Sasuke only nudged Sakura to follow her, walking through dusty halls and into a spare room. There the Uzumaki laid completely wrapped around a pillow, his mouth open with slight drool. Haruno scrunched up her nose before her eyebrows rose, “How are we going to wake him?”

Her raven eyes looked at the girl before shrugging. This made Haruno pout, then stomp over to Naruto with furrowed brows. She gently grasped the blankets before yanking them off, making the Uzumaki’s eyes fly open in alarm.

“Gah! What the hell?!”

“Good morning Naruto!” She sweetly responded, a dark look gleaming in her eyes. The bright boy shrunk back with a gulp, “Mo-Morning Sakura-chan…?”

Haruno threw the blanket back on him with a stern nod, making Sasuke quietly snort. These two already acted like their older selves, and she honestly adored it. She couldn’t help but look forward to the future.

Naruto let out a soft yelp, then sat up with a whine. “Sakura-chan why do ‘ya always gotta be so mean?”

She pursed her lip, “I’m not mean!….I’m not, right?”

He let out a giggle, “Just teasin’!”

  
  


It honestly took a while, but all three of them finally stood in an overgrown Uchiha training ground. “I wanna do the sticky thing,” Uzumaki blurted out, stomping to a tree as Sasuke sighed.

“I think you have to have good Chakra control,” The golden boy was already trying to shove his feet onto the tree as she spoke, Sakura staying quiet before sharply nodding.

She pushed her pink hair out of the way, “Naruto, did you do the leaf exercise?”

He paused, pulling his foot away, “No, I thought it was boring.”

Sakura let out a groan, “You can’t just skip stuff you find boring, Naruto!”

Sasuke closed her raven eyes before speaking up, “Then let’s do it now.”

She honestly didn’t remember doing the leaf exercise, but it could have slipped her memory. Soon enough Naruto and Sakura sat around her with leaves in their hands. “So how do we do this?” Naruto questioned while Sakura smiled, “It’s just like the sticky thing.”

“Ohh,” He shoved the leaf on his forehead, a look similar to constipation passing over his face.

Sasuke couldn’t help but let out a bark of laughter, covering her mouth with her hand as her leaf fell to the ground. The Uzumaki and Haruno stared at her, eyes wide with a look of alarm.

“Sa-Sasuke-kun?!”

“Teme?!”

She couldn’t help but laugh louder, wheezes shaking her body as tears pooled in her eyes. “Yo-You..Pfft-Haha-! You look like you’re sh-shitting yourself!”

Naruto startled, “Wha- Are ‘ya talking about me?!”

Sakura’s head whipped back and foruth, trying to figure out what the fuck was going on. Instead of answering Sasuke gasped for air, falling onto her back. She wasn’t sure why she was losing it, but she  _ needed _ this. It’s been too long since she’d laughed this hard about  _ anything _ .

Slowly her laughter stopped, and her chest heaved for air. Then, she sat up like nothing happened.

“Teme...I think that’s the first time i’ve heard ‘ya laugh!” Naruto blurted out, a joyful smile on his face that brightened up the area. Meanwhile Sakura had a similar look, but instead it had a hint of curiosity.

She softly snorted, shaking her head with a content smile. Maybe, just maybe, she shouldn’t hide her emotions around these two.

  
  
  


Haruno nervously spoke up, “Sasuke-kun...What does shitting mean?”

_ Oh no. _

Both Naruto and Sasuke glanced at each other before bursting into laughter.

Needless to say, training didn’t happen until  _ much _ later that day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's right, little Shikamaru makes an entrance! Although, his pov takes place right after the test incident.
> 
> 'It seemed like certain games would always reappear throughout time, even in different universes.'
> 
> The game mentioned in the sentance above is a spin-off of Grounders, a playground game from Canada. I'm not sure if kids play it anywhere else in the world, but it's pretty popular here. One thing I've also been trying to showcase is that trauma is complicated. Somedays you'll feel fine, and then other days you could randomly be set off from an unknown thing.


	5. Chapter 5

Turns out Naruto couldn’t do the leaf exercise. She could only guess it was because of Kurama, and the fact that the leaf was too small for someone with such a large quantity of Chakra. Soon enough Sasuke was able to push Naruto into sticking his hand onto the tree, and it _worked._ Well, it only worked for a few seconds, but it still worked!

She wouldn’t tell Naruto about his Chakra reserves since explaining it would be too troublesome, so instead she would try to push him in the right direction. Nonetheless Sakura had a calculating look on her face, and it scared her _right_ back into reality.

Now that she had the main members of Team Seven, she had to become friends with Kakashi, a highly intelligent Shinobi. One fuck up and he’d inteorgate her like it was the end of the world.

Either than that she knew how to strike a conversation with him, but didn’t know how to make it seem real.

“How did you learn about this technique anyway?” Sakura mumbled, standing beside her as they both watched Naruto play around with his Chakra.

She paused, “...When my family was around I watched them train sometimes,”

Haruno tilted her head before awkwardly looking away, “Sorry.”

“It’s okay.”

In fact, it was more than okay.

Afterall, the pink haired girl just gave her an idea.

“Gahhh, this is boring! Can we fight now?” Naruto twirled around with his cheeks puffed out. He looked like a ruffled dog being denied their toy. “Fight? You mean spar?” Sakura piped up, hands clasped together while the Uzumaki flew forward.

“Yeah, whatever it’s called,” he looked over expectedly at Sasuke, making her sigh.

“How about you and Haruno spar?”

“Wait, me?” Sakura spluttered, blinking in confusion, “But...I’m not very good at it.”

Sasuke gently nodded, “That’s okay. It’s a spar for a reason, we’re learning.”

“Yeah Sakura-chan! We’re learnin’!” He grinned wolfishly, watching Sakura’s eyes flash with determination. “Okay, I’ll do my best!” Her tiny fingers clenched together, looking back at Sasuke.

“I’ll ref,” she hummed, pushing her raven locks to the side. Naruto, the curious boy he was, immediately perked up, “Ref? What’s ref?”

She shook her head, walking over to lean against a tree “Nevermind, I’ll just count you down.”

This sent the two children hurtling to move into a fighting stance. Adrenaline pumping through their bodies as Sasuke looked them up and down. “Good?” She questioned, only for quick nods to be sent her way. “Alright,” a sigh escaped her lips.

“Three,”

Naruto moved his foot a little to the left.

“Two,”

Sakura’s brows furrowed.

“One.”

There was a pause of silence. Then, both children ran at eachother like lions. Sakura nervously fell into the Academy style while Naruto messily threw a punch her way. Dust flew up as Haruno easily moved to the side, biting her lip in confusion.

The jinchuriki twisted his body along, throwing another punch towards her stomach.

Sakura’s normally unused muscles stuttered, making the pink girl stumble to the left as she tried to dodge once more.

Honestly, watching two kids fight was hilarious. It wasn’t fast, nor was it amazing. In fact, it was slow. Every move Sasuke’s friends did took more than a couple seconds, and her onyx eyes could watch them without strain.

Naruto pushed his right leg off the ground, hastily kicking Sakura’s stomach. A gasp escaped her lips, falling onto her back with a rather loud whimper.

The sunshine haired boy paused, looking down with concern, “Sakura-chan?”

Complete silence.

Naruto squatted down beside her, “S-Sakura?”

Out of nowhere her fist lashed out, landing a solid hit on his stomach that sent him tumbling backwards. She pushed herself up as fast as possible, quickly placing her foot on his chest with a loud “I win!”

The Uzumaki let out a cough, “He-Hey! Wait no, that’s cheating!” He accused, lips pursed up in a pout.

She sharply shook her head, “No, I tricked you!”

“Yeah! ‘Ya cheated!” He continued, grabbing her foot and trying to push it off.

Sasuke shook her head fondly, slowly walking over to her friends. “She didn’t cheat Uzumaki,” she looked down at the boy, raising her brow. “She just acted like a Shinobi.”

Soon enough Sakura took her foot away, letting Naruto sit up with a huff. “See! I told you so,” the pink haired girl chimed while sticking her tongue out.

Sasuke ignored her, instead holding out her hand to the jinchuricki with a small smile, “Remember the test?”

He grabbed her hand, letting himself be pulled up, “Yeah?”

“It’s kind of like that. There were no rules, so Haruno took advantage of that.”

This made him pause, going silent for a few seconds before a soft “Oh,” escaped his lips. “Sorry for saying ‘ya cheated Sakura-chan…”

“No no, it’s okay,” she shook her head, “I was being a bit mean too, sorry.”

“It’s okay, I forgive you,” he gently put his hand on her shoulder with a grin. Sasuke listened with a tiny smile, beyond proud of her friends. Afterall, being able to apologize and forgive was something most people didn’t do.

She took a deep breath, pulling Naruto away from the pink haired girl to brush dirt off his clothes, “Now, what do you think you did right during the spar?”

“I hit Sakura-chan!” He puffed his chest out with pride, making the green-eyed girl giggle. “Okay,” Sasuke shook her head with a soft snort, “What about you Haruno?”

“Huh?” She blinked before tilting her head, “Um...Well I dodged and waited?”

“Good. Uzumaki,” Sasuke pulled away from the sunshine boy, turning to Sakura to brush dirt off of her. “What did you do wrong?”

“Do wrong? I didn’t do anything wrong!”

Both of the girls looked at Naruto with raised eyebrows. This made him tense before groaning, “Okay okay...umm I got tricked?”

“Haruno, do you agree with that?”

“..No,” she hesitatingly added, “Your Taijutsu was weird? And you kept leaving your sides open.”

The Uzumaki pursed his lips then shook his head, “Dammit! I thought I fixed the open sides thing!”

Sasuke snorted, “Alright. Haruno, what did you do wrong?”

“Oh!” Her cheeks flushed, “Well, I let Naruto hit me.”

“Yeah, and you were all wobbly!” He piped up, watching Sasuke step away from Sakura since she was done with brushing the dirt away. The bubblegum girl frowned, “It’s ‘cuz I don’t train..”

Naruto placed his hands on his hips, grin brightening up the area, “Well you’re lucky that you’ll be training with us!”

Her tiny body perked up immediately, “Really..?”

Sasuke hummed, “Yes. Now go back to training,”

Both of her friends jumped in surprise, a collective “Huh?!” escaping their lips. She waved her hand, “Haruno, you need to work on your endurance. Uzumaki, you need to work on patience.” Her black eyes gleamed, finally letting a look of mischievousness fly over her face. “Do you know what that means?” She crossed her arms.

Naruto gulped, looking over at Sakura with worry before shaking his head.

“Push-ups,” she tapped her foot, trying her best to give off a vibe of leadership. All the while watching Haruno tense up with anxiety.

“Now, give me twenty.”

Naruto scrambled to the ground while shrieking something along the lines of “What the hell?” Meanwhile, Sakura followed along with a simple yet loud “Yes sir!”

Sasuke couldn’t help but internally frown.

She really hated her public pronouns.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


“Wow Sasuke, I didn’t know ‘ya could be so scary.” Naruto mumbled, his usual spiky hair slick with sweat. Sakura let out a laugh, brushing her pink locks to the side. “Yeah Sasuke-kun, I didn’t think that would happen.”

At the moment all three of them were wandering back into the compound, her two friends covered in dirt while she walked along completely clean. Sasuke didn’t end up training with them, but she was perfectly happy to coach these two along (even if she didn’t know much). At the same time she was terrified of overworking them. “...Sorry.” She mumbled, looking to the side.

Sakura shook her hand, patting her shoulder, “It’s okay! It was a lot of fun.”

The Uzumaki nodded, “Yeah! And now we get to go back to ‘yer house and hang out!”

Sasuke didn’t know that was happening, but she was fine with it. Afterall, she made sure she was mentally prepared to be around people today. “As long as you don’t make a mess,” she added, watching Naruto tense up with a groan. “Don’t worry Sasuke-kun,” Sakura grinned, wrapping her arm around the blond boy, “I’ll make sure Naruto doesn’t make a mess!”

His cheeks flushed in embarrassment, “H-Hey!”

Sakura snorted, easily pulling away to glance back at Sasuke. “Trust me, I read a book about cleaning and now I know everything.”

“Oh?” She hummed, grasping the door and letting her two friends in first. “I know how to clean too!” Naruto whined, pulling off his shoes. Sasuke could only guess he was feeling left out.

Soon enough they were all in the kitchen, which seemed to be a running theme that happened every time her friends came over. “Sasuke-kun, can we see your room?” Sakura questioned, tilting her head while pushing her hair behind her ears. “My room?” She grunted, brows furrowed curiously. This seemed to make Naruto perk up, “Yeah! I’ve never seen your room.”

“It’s just a room,” her raven eyes squinted, “I don’t know why’d you want to go there.”

“Well ‘ya already seen my room,” Naruto gently leaned against Sakura, and surprisingly she let him do so. “Wait, you’ve seen Naruto’s room?” Her green eyes furrowed with curiosity. Sasuke let out a soft sigh, “Yes, I cleaned his apartment.”

A look of bewilderment appeared on Sakura’s face, “You cleaned his house?”

“...It was dirty,” she mumbled. Naruto let out a loud whine while shaking his head, “Why are you guys always teasin’ me?!”

The pink haired girl grabbed his ear, “Naruto!”

“Ah! Sakura-chan?!”

“Why did Sasuke-kun have to clean your own house?!” She scolded, eyes squinted in fake anger. Naruto hurriedly leaned over to poke Sakura’s sides, making the young girl yelp then pull away. Unsurprisingly, she was already moving to poke him back.

Sasuke let out a purposefully large sigh, making her two friends freeze and look over.

“No fighting in the kitchen.”

“Sorry Sasuke-kun!”

“Sorry teme!”

She tilted her head to the side, rolling her eyes while she tried to hide her smile. Her friends always made her mood brighter, even if she was having a bad day.

“Well if you don’t want to show us your room,”

_Ah, of course Sakura noticed that._

“Then can we see your garden?”

When did Haruno even _see_ that she had a garden?

“Oh! Oh! The garden is _so_ pretty,” Naruto stood up, hastley grabbing Sakura’s hand. It seemed like the young Uzumaki was already set on showing the girl her plants, even though Sasuke had yet to say yes.

“I’ll show ‘ya where I helped Sasuke with ‘em!”

“You helped Sasuke-kun?”

“Yeah, I know more about plants than him!” She could practically hear the pride in his voice as she watched the two of them venture into the backyard. How dare he be so sweet? Seriously, it was a goddamn super weapon. Sasuke couldn’t tell if he was like that because of trauma, or if it was just because of the fact he’s a kid.

She turned her head to the kitchen window, innocently listening in to her friends talk. Naruto would point to plants and say a couple words while the pink haired girl listened intently. Sakura’s eyes were blown wide in fascination, and if Sasuke tried she could imagine anime-like sparkles in them.

Kaa-san would have been happy seeing her garden appreciated.

  
  
  
  
  
  


.-.

  
  
  
  
  
  


A loud burp echoed throughout the room.

“Sorry guys,” Naruto mumbled.  
  
“Ew, that was so gross,” Sakura scrunched up her face in disgust.

“What the hell,” Sasuke muttered to herself, slowly looking back down at her scroll.

At the moment all of them were in Tou-san’s library. Well, it wasn’t really a library. It was just a room with a chabudai, along with some shelves that held scrolls. Sasuke didn’t come in here often, but once Sakura and Naruto grew tired of looking at plants she directed them here.

Sakura took to the scrolls in a happy haze, looking around with the same eagerness of a predator about to catch its prey. Meanwhile Naruto sat down beside Sasuke with a couple snacks, not bothering to look around until she mentioned that there might be plant scrolls hidden.

“Sorry sorry!” Naruto apologized again, cheeks flushed as he stuffed his face with more bread. His sky eyes looking back down to the table where an old scroll laid. She wasn’t exactly sure what he picked, but Sasuke didn’t mind. “It’s fine,” Sakura hummed, tilting her head back to her own scroll. It seemed a bit newer, and Sasuke could see large letters containing the words _Wire_ and _Jutsu._

In the end, Sasuke didn’t grab any scrolls for herself. She was far too lazy to read and instead placed her head on the table, slowly closing her raven eyes as she listened to her friends breathe.

Maybe she could sleep peacefully with them around.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Turns out she couldn’t, because after a few minutes she suddenly felt tiny hands grasp her shirt and gently shake her.

“Teme, do ‘ya got more of these?”

She slowly rubbed her eyes, softly mumbling, “...More of what?”

Out of nowhere an old scroll was shoved into her face, making Sasuke sit up straighter. “More of this,” Naruto shook the paper, blue eyes looking more serious than before. Her fingers softly grasped the scroll, onyx eyes focusing on the words in front of her.

_Mokuton._

So that’s what he’s looking at.

She never knew Tou-san had this, but considering she was a Uchiha it didn’t seem that out of character either. “I don’t know,” she tilted the scroll, catching the sight of the Shodaime’s name. This seemed to make Naruto wilt like a flower, his brows furrowed in poorly hidden sadness. “But,” he perked up again, “If you look hard enough there _might_ be more.”

A grin easily slid on his lips, “Thank you Sasuke!”

Instead of saying anything she simply handed him back the old script, quietly wondering what he _really_ wanted. Afterall, she hadn’t seen him get this curious over a scroll before. Sasuke looked over to Sakura and saw that the young girl had grabbed even more documents.

She couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow.

Sakura seemed interested in learning Fire jutsu’s, but Sasuke knew that’d be extremely hard for her. The pink haired girl had water & earth natures, and doing fire would be hell. Yet, Sasuke knew it wasn’t impossible. Afterall, fire technically wasn’t her main nature, and she could only guess that’s why it took so long for her to master the Fireball jutsu.

“Sasuke-kun.”

“Hm?”

“Could you teach me some of these?”

She held back a grin, “Why?”

Sakura paused, looking at her in bewilderment, “Huh? Why?”

She nodded, “Yes, why?”

“Well…” The young girl shuffled in her spot, seeming to gather her thoughts before nervously speaking up, “I..I want to be strong.”

Sasuke stared before smiling gently, “Okay.”

“..Okay?”

“I’ll teach you,” she didn’t see the point in hiding Uchiha techniques like these.

Her clan was gone.

It would be a waste to hide information that could save lives.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


“You’re sleeping over?”

“Yeah, me and Sasuke are gonna party!”

“No we aren’t.”

The Uzumaki pouted, “Teme, I wanted to seem cool!”

She gently snorted before shaking her head, watching Sakura purse her lips. “I wish I could sleep over..” She whispered, tucking a strand of pink hair behind her ear.

Sasuke tilted her head, “Why can’t you?”

“I can?” The girl seemed amazed, her green eyes sparkling in excitement. “Yeah yeah, you should join us Sakura-chan!” Naruto leaned back, laying on the floor in content.

She seemed even more happy, yet her excitement died down. Instead, a small frown came to her lips, “You’re both boys..”

_She wasn’t a boy._

Naruto’s face scrunched up in confusion, “What do ‘ya mean?”

All Sakura could do was shrug.

Sasuke couldn’t believe girls being friends with guys was a stigma here too. Plus, they were _children._ There was no logical reason for this to be a thing. Unknowingly, Sasuke’s face was twisting up into frustration. Her teeth were clenched, and her fingernails were pushing into the palms of her hands.

“That’s bullshit.” She muttered, which was quick to earn her shocked looks. After a few seconds of silence, Naruto easily spoke up. “Uh oh,” he said in a teasing voice, “Teme’s mad!”

Internally, she knew Naruto was just trying to calm her down in his own way. But Sakura took his choice of words differently, “Naruto!” She quietly chided, “Don’t be mean to Sasuke-kun.”

“It’s okay,” Sasuke hurriedly spoke up with a gentle sigh, “I’m not mad at you guys,” she reaffirmed. Naruto squinted, “Then what are ‘ya mad at?”

She slowly let her hands relax, “...Nothing. Are you sure there isn’t a way for you to sleep over?”

Haruno paused, staring at Sasuke before shaking her head. She hummed in slight annoyance, pushing her dark bangs to the side.

_Maybe next time._

Naruto let out a long whine, “Sasuke, I’m hungry.”

“I’ll make dinner-”

The pink haired girl shot up, dashing to a stand, “It’s already dinner time?!”

“Yeah-?” Naruto let out a squeak as Sakura ran out of the room. “I’m sorry!” Her fading voice shouted, “I’m late for dinner!”

“Uh,” Sasuke slowly stood up, walking out of the room and towards the door, the Jinchuriki following along like a duckling. “I’ll see you guys later,” she clumsily slid on her shoes, grasping the door knob before turning around to smile. “And maybe I’ll convince my parents to let me sleep over!” Haruno slipped out the house, leaving Sasuke and Naruto by themselves.

“So...Dinner?”

“...I’ll make some beef dumplings.”

“Awesome!”

  
  
  
  
  


_._

  
  
  
  
  
  


“Teme..?” Naruto mumbled, laying on the sheets he’d used last time. Sasuke laid beside him on another futon, having found it in a closet. “Yeah?” She gently replied, watching as he shifted around nervously.

“Do you...Do you think I’m annoying?”

She raised an eyebrow while frowning with worry. “No,” Sasuke paused as she raised her hand to ruffle his hair. “I don’t find you annoying at all.”

His cheeks flushed, not making a move to push away her touch.

“Maybe a bit mischievous,” she continued.

“What does that mean?”

“Someone who’s...a trickster, playful, and maybe does pranks?”

Naruto looked away, eyebrows furrowed with anxiety as he pulled the sheets closer to his chest.

Sasuke pulled her hand aside as he moved. “...Why?” She gently questioned.

“...’cus.”

Her face twisted up in confusion, “...’cus?”

“...’cus everyone says it, y’know?”

The young boy curled up, unaware of her turmoil. He continued quietly, “They...I don’t want to be annoying to ‘ya.”

She easily slid closer, slowly patting his head as an act of comfort. “You aren’t annoying to me,” a huff escaped her lips, “Don’t be scared, I’m not going to leave.”

His whole body tensed at those words, bright sky eyes looking up while his mouth gaped open in surprise. Sasuke smiled gently.

“You aren’t going to lose me for a long time, Uzumaki.”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


They always ended up like this. With him somehow hugging onto her like a parasite, and her being overheated with the blankets and the hot touch of his skin. Honestly, the boy was a walking furnace. That doesn’t mean she didn’t enjoy it though. In fact, Sasuke adored sleepovers with Naruto.

Truthfully, both of them were extremely lonely. Hanging out helped, but being near someone while sleeping was a dream come true.

“Sasuke, can we have pancakes?”

“Leave me alone,” she grunted, twisting her body away from him as she held onto a pillow. Naruto whined loudly, pulling at the blankets wrapped around her.

“But Sasuke-!”

She groaned, gently pushing the young boy away as he tried to lay on top of her.

“It’s too early for this…”

On normal days, when she didn’t have to go to the Academy, Sasuke tried to sleep in. It was a habit she’d accidentally picked up when nightmares plagued her.

Nonetheless, it seemed like it was the opposite for Naruto. He was able to sleep in up until his stomach demanded to be fed.

“But Sasuke-!”

Soon enough she was sitting up, her raven hair sticking up all over the place while she glared with fake agitation. Nervous sweat beaded down the Uzumaki’s forehead before a snort escaped her lips.

“...Okay fox boy, but you’re going to have to get off.”

A grin appeared on his lips immediately, eagerly jumping off of her futon and wobbling on his feet.

“I can have milk too?” He quickly added on, staring at her intensely.

She blinked in confusion but nodded anyway, “Sure?”

Naruto grabbed onto her hand, pulling her up like a ragdoll (or maybe that was because she’d let him), then dragging her towards the kitchen. Sasuke wouldn’t be surprised if he knew the compound better than her, afterall it wasn’t strange to find him walking around in the empty district after the academy was over.

Rubbing her eyes she walked towards the stove, grabbing everything that was needed as Naruto sat down.

“Alright, how many do you want?”

The young boy tilted his head, squinting his eyes in deep thought before a hungry look passed over his face.

“Nine!”

_Nine? She couldn’t even eat that much!_   
  


Nonetheless, Sasuke didn’t hesitate to start making breakfast. He was her friend, and she’d do anything for her friend.

Even if it meant watching him create... _horrible_ things.

“Uzumaki I don’t think-” she gagged, “I don’t think that’s how you’re supposed to eat that.”

“Why?” He mumbled, mouth full of soggy pancakes.

“It’s just,” Sasuke felt like crying, “ _Wrong_..”

Naruto paused, before going back to dunking his pancakes in a glass of milk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahh gosh I'm so sorry for the wait guys! With school and the holidays I didn't have much time to write. Also, thank you for the 200+ kudos <3 I really didn't think my story would get any attention. I do my best to write emotionally, yet sometimes I'm scared that my writing is awful. Nonetheless, thank you all!


	6. Chapter 6

When strolling through Konoha, Sasuke couldn’t help but stare. This world held a strange mixture of modern technology, and the social norms of the old. These two things influenced fashion majorly. It wasn’t strange to see someone wearing a t-shirt and shorts, then see someone else wearing a traditional kimono.

In fact, Sasuke wanted to try on a kimono desperately. It was something she’d always wanted to do, but now she had a number of reasons for holding back.

Sometimes she’d catch the eye of a seller, looking away hastily as they smiled brightly.

Nonetheless, she had other things to do. More _ important  _ things.

At long last her raven eyes caught the sight of a sweets store. More often than not she never came here, but today was different. Today she had places to be, and an act to put on.

Eventually a box of Dango laid in her palms, and they reminded her of  _ nii-san _ . Yet she remained calm as her feet took her towards the memorial stone.

  
  
  
  
  
  


“For some reason, I have a feeling this stone is  _ too _ small.” She muttered, slowly taking a seat as a sigh broke from her pale lips.

The grass was a bit wet from morning dew, and the sky was slowly turning a nice blue. Sasuke made sure to come early in the morning, because that’s when she felt like Kakashi would arrive. Of course there was a chance he wouldn’t arrive at all.

Causally breaking the box open, she stuffed the sweets into her mouth. Savouring the taste as her eyes rolled over names innocently.

_ Obito Uchiha. _

Another person she had to worry about.

If he could be redeemed, would he still wish to be a Uchiha?

Sasuke scoffed, shaking her head at the thought. She doubted he could even be redeemed unless she twisted up some lies (or if Naruto talked to him, but that wouldn’t happen anytime soon).

...Maybe she shouldn’t have come. Instead, she could've waited until she caught sight of Kakashi. But no, she wasn’t  _ patient _ enough. In actuality, Sasuke doubted Kakashi would even show himself in front of her  _ willingly.  _ That just meant she had to  _ surprise _ him-

Yeah, there was no way she would be able to do that. Surprise an Elite Jounin? Bullshit. If Hatake didn’t want to be found, then he wouldn’t be found.

“God,” she internally whined. “This sounded so much easier before..”

Although, a strange devilish grin was quick to cut through her cheeks like knives. Sasuke knew she had to play dirty. Her hands grasped another Dango, hastily standing up with a sinister chuckle.

He wouldn’t be able to escape  _ this _ plan.

  
  
  
  
  
  


“Uzumaki, I need your help.”

A tired Naruto, who was still in his pyjamas, stood in the entrance of his apartment, looking at Sasuke in confusion. “What?? What’s going on?” He grunted, stepping to the side as she pushed herself in. “You’re good at sneaking around, right?” She questioned, walking towards his kitchen as he followed along. The Uzumaki paused, then nodded as he saw her placing the box of Dango onto his counter.

“If you help me, I’ll give you these sweets.”

“Sure!” Naruto eagerly grinned, pupils blown wide like a happy cat. “How should I be sneaky?”

“Alright,” She leaned closer to his ear. “I need you to find a green man.”

This made him splutter, confusion and worry quickly destroying the happiness on his face. “Sasuke? Are ‘ya okay?” He croaked, watching her snort while shaking her head. “Uzumaki, I’m fine.” She reassured, “What I meant was, I need to look for a guy that wears a green suit-”

A loud gasp interrupted her words, making her raven eyes squint in interest. “Oh my god!” He shrieked, “I know who ‘yer talking about!”

“Wait..Seriously?”

“Yeah!” Naruto nodded sagely. “I’ve seen him around sometimes, mostly in the morning when I’m walkin’ to the Academy,” he babbled, “And he runs around that one training ground! With freaky leg things and that weird hair cu-”

“Okay okay. Can you find him then?” She mused once again. Naruto smirked, “Duh.”

“Good good,” she paused for a couple seconds, staring at the young boy before she glanced around. “Do you have a sticky note?” She questioned, already turning to rustle through his drawers as if she lived there. Naruto didn’t seem to mind, since he tilted his head in confusion, “Sticky notes?”

_ Ah, did they not have those here either? Or did Naruto not own any? _

“Uh, do you have a small piece of paper?” She nervously clarified, making the young boy look at her strangely. “Why didn’t ‘ya just say so?” He waved his hand, scurrying off towards his bedroom as a sigh escaped her lips. Compared to how his apartment looked the first time she was here, it was  _ way  _ more cleaner. It seems like Naruto did listen to her, and did his best to keep everything nice. Of course, there was also a high chance that the kitchen was the only clean room in the apartment too.

Soon enough he scuttled back over, gently placing the paper on the table. She cleared her throat, making a hand gesture for a pen. “Oops,” he opened one of his drawers then handed her a pencil.

“Sorry teme-”

“Don’t worry about it.” She immediately was writing, not caring to hide it away from Naruto’s prying eyes. Afterwards, she pushed the paper back into his hands. “I want you to give this to the green man.” She ordered, making the young boy sharply nod. Sasuke proceeded to watch him look out the window, then tensed up as he started to rush around.

“...What are you doing?” She questioned as Naruto pulled off his pyjama shirt. “I didn’t know how late it was!” He shouted, tripping into his bedroom as she followed along.

“Late for what?”

“The Academy!”

_ Ah, today’s a school day? _

“And-” he tossed his pants onto the bed, pulling open his closet then grabbing clothes. “If I’m late I’ll miss bowl head!”

Sasuke's brows furrowed in confusion, “...Bowl head?”

“The guy ‘ya want me ‘ta talk to!” In a few seconds he was already in his clothes, zooming past her and rushing to the front door. “I’ll see ‘ya later Sasuke,” he grunted, grasping onto his shoes and sliding them on easily. Then, he was gone. Leaving her all alone in his apartment.

“Well, he’s certainly got his priorities straight.” She mumbled.

  
  
  
  


._.

  
  
  
  


At long last, Sasuke could relax.

It felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders, knowing that she didn’t have to worry about  _ too _ much anymore.

So here she sat in kaa-san’s garden, gently breathing in the scent of fresh air while she lazed around. Sure, she should be at the Academy, but it’s normal for her not to go. At first she thought Iruka would be mad, be instead he smiled and treated her normally. Sasuke could only guess he understood the need to take mental breaks. In fact, he was the  _ only _ teacher she’d ever known to understand-

“Sasuke-kun! So this is where you are!” A loud boisterous voice cut through her thoughts as a small yelp escaped her lips, her body automatically tensing and her tiny fingers flying to her chest. It felt like her heart was beating at a mile per second.

“Oh! I apologize, I thought you heard me.”

She slowly turned around, only to come face to face with a crouching Might Gai.

“It’s...fine.” She breathed out as her raven eyes took in the sight of him. He was taller than she expected, and his eyebrows were _ truly _ bushy. Yet, she couldn’t help but feel bad for him. Sure, he dressed weird, but he seemed like a decent guy. Well, that’s what her instincts told her anyway.

“Naruto-kun came up to me and handed me your paper!” He grinned. “What a wonderful bond of friendship you two have...But I have to ask, why did you need to talk to me?”

Sasuke decided not to inquire about how he knew her bonds, and instead went straight in with a question she’s been waiting to ask for ages.

“Could you take me to Hatake?”

Gai blinked in surprise, then slowly stood up from his crouch. No longer was he at eye level, which she knew he probably did to make her comfortable. “Why do you wish to talk to my rival?” He questioned softly, watching Sasuke as she moved to stand as well.

_ Let’s hope this works. _

“My family has some documents,” she nonchalantly spoke, making sure to keep her Uchiha emotionless mask on. “One of them mentioned him.” She continued, watching Gai for any change of expression. But it turns out the Jounin was good at hiding anything he didn’t want her to see. “Kakashi, huh?” He mused, a hand going to his face as he mimicked a thinking pose.

A few seconds passed, then he nodded. Giving her a simple thumbs up with a one thousand watt smile. “Alright, I’ll take you to his apartment!”

_ Wait, what- _

Suddenly she was picked up and thrown over his shoulder, letting a soft grunt fall out of her lips at the impact. Sasuke didn’t even have time to blink before Gai started to sprint across the rooftops of the empty compound. It felt like she was on a rollercoaster, and she couldn’t help but slightly smile at the thought. In her past life this would technically be called kidnapping, but since he was a jounin no one took a second look. Also it was  _ Gai _ .

After a couple minutes, her ride across Konoha started to slow down. Soon enough Sasuke was gently lifted up and placed in front of a door. “My rival should be inside,” Gai looked at her with an easy smile. “Good luck, Sasuke-kun!”

“...Thanks, Gai.”

He grinned before turning around and jumping off to another rooftop, leaving her standing alone in an eerily quiet apartment complex. She softly huffed in amusement, then looked at Kakashi’s door.

This was it. This was her chance to change someone else’s life once more.

Sasuke slowly lifted her hand, and knocked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I know, a cliff hanger :( Trust me I'm practically done the next chapter already. I hope to get it published by today or tomorrow so you won't have to wait long :D The only reason why I did a cliff hanger was to add dramatic effect, and I doubt I'm going to make any other cliff hangers ever again.
> 
> Thank you all for your comments! They really make my day, and help me contuine writing.
> 
> For those of you going to school, how is it? I know right now I'm stressed out (even if I'm staying at home).


	7. Chapter 7

The door slid open, and there stood Kakashi Hatake in all his glory.

  
  
  
  
  


Well, if you ignored the fact that he was wearing paw-printed pyjamas. He actually looked like he just woke up. His grey hair was all messy, and he wasn’t even wearing his headband. Sasuke kind of felt bad now. “Hello,” she greeted, watching as his beady eye stared into hers. Awkward silence filled the air around them, and he honestly looked like he would rather vanish than talk to her.

“Shouldn’t you be at the Academy?”

_ He finally speaks! _

“..Yes.”

A few more seconds of silence passed by before Sasuke finally realized  _ she _ was the one supposed to talk.

“I need to speak to you.”

“Okay,” he still stood at the door, not moving at all. She couldn’t help but internally roll her eyes, “I mean alone.”

This time he raised his eyebrow before turning around and dragging his feet back into his apartment, leaving the door wide open. A quiet sigh of relief escaped her lips, grabbing a hold of the knob and closing the door behind her once she was in. “Shoes on or off?” She asked, watching him blink then mumble “..Off?”

Right. Konoha was all about  _ taking your shoes off _ in houses. In her past she  _ never _ wore shoes inside, but she  _ did _ know people who didn’t care. So, it was always polite to ask.

Turns out his apartment wasn’t dirty at all, and she  _ meant _ that. It looked nice and tidy, and there was no clutter. But then her eyes caught sight of Kakashi himself, and he was staring intently at her. It looked like it was time to get on with this. “I read some scrolls from my clan a few days ago,” She started. He tilted his head like a curious puppy, but she guessed it was because he wanted her to get to the point.

“A lot of them said your name...I was wondering if you could train me.”

His lone onyx eye became wide while a mildy surprised “ _ What _ ?” fell from his lips. Sasuke wished she had a camera. “I want you to train me, Hatake.” She firmly stated. Time seemed to slow to a halt as she let him process the information. “Train you?” He repeated as his rigid body went back into a slouch. “And why would I do that?”

_ Now or never. _

“You’re the only one in the village with a Sharingan-” _ lie  _ “-so I would be thankful if you trained me.” She explained, hoping it didn’t sound too fake. “You have the Sharingan?” Kakashi questioned, seeming to become more lazy as time passed on.

In reality, Sasuke wasn’t sure. The massacre felt like... _ a dream _ . Nii-san’s Genjutsu really messed her up, and sometimes she couldn’t tell which of her memories were fake or not when it came to the slaughter of her clan.

“..No,” she softly uttered as she looked down, “But I do need help...and my friends need help too.”

His brows furrowed, turning around and moving towards a different room. She of course followed him, and only looked up when she heard the sound of water falling into a glass. “Your friends?” he hummed, lifting the cup to his mask, not seeming to give a shit as water seeped through the fabric while he drank. Sasuke ignored this, because she’d seen weirder things, and softly mumbled, “Haruno and Uzumaki. I try to help them, but I just don’t know some stuff.”

This made him pause, tilting his head and settling the glass on the counter.

“...I’ll think about it.”

Her lips twitched, trying her best to hold back a smile.

“Give me a day or two, and I’ll contact you,” he walked over, holding his hands out slightly in a ‘shooing motion. Sasuke eagerly nodded, rushing back towards the door then slipping her shoes back on.

“Thank you.”

He nodded in response, watching her leave his apartment silently.

If someone told her they saw her dance outside of Kakashi’s door, she’d deny it, because she absolutely  _ did not _ dance outside of Kakashi’s door.

  
  
  
  
  


._.

  
  
  
  
  


“Sasuke-kun! You came!” Sakura cheered, standing against a tree as Naruto laid on the grass next to her. Although, the boy quickly shot up as he heard his friend's name. Sasuke waved her hand slightly, trotting towards them. After seeing Kakashi she decided to go to the Academy. She wouldn’t tell her friends about Hatake, but because of him she was in a good enough mood to go to school. “Do you want some lunch?” Sakura offered, shoving the bento in her hands towards Sasuke. “No,” she shook her head, then looked down at Naruto with a tiny smile. “Thank you for giving the paper to Gai.”

The Uzumaki stared at her for a moment, looking confused. Then, a large grin took over his face. “No problem! But man, that guy was weird! ‘Ya should of seen his eyebrows-”

“I did see him.” She softly cut him off. Meanwhile, Haruno looked confused. The young pink haired girl had gone back to eating her bento before mumbling, “Eyebrows? What are you guys talking about?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Sasuke waved her off while quietly snorting. But it seemed like Naruto was more than happy to fill her in on what had happened. “Oh man, ‘ya should've seen it Sakura-chan! This guy wore a green suit and had huge eyebrows! I mean  _ huge _ !”

Her face scrunched up in poorly hidden disgust. “A  _ green _ suit?! Ew!” Sakura shivered, then moved to give Naruto the rest of her bento. “Cool! Free food!” He joyfully started to shove rice into his mouth.

Sasuke decided to ignore the entire exchange and sat down beside Naruto on the grass. Soon enough, Haruno moved along to sit beside them as well. “Y’know,” Naruto mumbled while he chewed through his food, “Why did ‘ya want me to give that guy a paper anyway?”

“I’ll tell you later. Right now though-” she reached over and took a chunk of rice out of the bento, shoving it into her mouth.

Naruto let out a loud yelp. “Hey!”

“-You could tell me what I missed.” Sasuke finished, looking away from the blonde boy then into Sakura’s eyes. “Oh!” Haruno grinned from ear to ear, more than happy to indulge Sasuke with knowledge. “Well today we covered the start of formations, and then after we did a couple papers on them!”

“Sakura-chan~” Naruto let out a loud whine. “You’re just gonna ignore what teme did?”

“Of course I helped Naruto-kun out with them, and he did pretty well!” Sakura continued along, completely ignoring the Uzumaki spluttering with a blush. “Well of course I did well!” He huffed with pride. Sasuke let out a chuckle, shaking her head in amusement, “That’s all you did?”

Haruno nodded, “Yeah! Then Iruka-sensei let us out for lunch.”

The Academy really  _ is _ pathetic. No wonder Shikamaru sleeps through everything. Sasuke had a feeling the Academy wasn’t supposed to turn out this way, but there  _ were _ a lot of things in Konoha that weren’t supposed to be the way they are.

_ Root. _

She tilted her head up, short raven hair flowing through the wind as she stared at the bright green leaves.

“Haruno? Uzumaki?”

Naruto simply hummed in acknowledgment while the pink girl mumbled, “Yeah?”

“..Do you think you guys could braid my hair again?” She whispered.

Silence greeted her instead of an answer, making her look back down towards her friends. There Sakura sat with her jaw practically dropped to the floor. Meanwhile, Naruto had also looked towards Sasuke like she had three heads.

“Wait a minute,” the Uzumaki squinted in confusion. “You want  _ us _ to braid your hair?”

Someone touching her hair felt  _ intimate _ , and she missed having someone playing with her midnight locks. Yet, Sasuke understood how her request was weird. Afterall, she was supposed to be a grumpy Uchiha. But nonetheless, her cheeks felt warm as she nodded.

Both of her friends blinked before looking at each other. Then, they  _ grinned _ .

“Sakura-chan! Sakura-chan!” Naruto chanted. “We get to do teme’s hair again!” He bounced on the ground excitedly, watching Sakura do the exact same thing. “We should make Sasuke-kun’s hair a  _ bunch _ of braids!” The young girl giggled happily.

Sasuke didn’t even notice how tense her body was until she relaxed.

It looked like her friends wouldn’t judge her after all.

  
  
  
  
  


._.

  
  
  
  
  
  


Kakashi couldn’t help but stare at Hiruzen with a look of pure exhaustion.

“This may be a good opportunity for you.”

“...What?”

The Third Hokage let out a sigh, settling his tobacco on top of his desk before bringing his fingers together. “You’ve been in Anbu for a long time, longer than most.” He paused, closing his aged eyes. “This would be a good time to relieve you of your duties.”

“He’s young.” Kakashi mumbled, trying to think of  _ any _ reasonable excuses.

“...He is.” Sarutobi nodded in agreement.

“There’s no war.”

“I know. But there are other things we need to... _ protect _ him from.”

Just like that, a silent understanding passed between the two Shinobi.

Hiruzen picked up his pipe, took one single puff, then settled it back down onto his desk. “Here’s what will happen,” he mumbled. “You’ll remain in Anbu, but your missions will be scattered. On your ‘off’ time, you’ll train Sasuke.”

Kakashi let out a quiet sigh, “Anyway I could bargain?”

Sarutobi’s brows crinkled in poorly hidden amusement, “These are your orders.”

“...Yes, Hokage-sama.”

  
  
  
  
  


._.

  
  
  
  
  
  


Eventually a day had passed, and Sasuke couldn’t help but anxiously water kaa-san’s flowers as she waited for Kakashi's reply. He did say a day or so, but she’d rather know now. Maybe it was a bad idea to ask for help. Maybe she’d be better off trying to do everything herself. It  _ would _ be easier to do everything alone.

“Sasuke-kun!” A faint squeaky voice echoed through the normally silent street, making her slowly stand in slight confusion. “Haruno..?” She mumbled, her dark eyes catching sight of the young girl running towards her.

“Hello Sasuke-kun!” Sakura stumbled into the garden with a wide smile, hastily taking a seat beside Sasuke. “Hello Haruno, shouldn’t it be lunch at the Academy?” She questioned, placing the watering can on damp grass. Sakura nodded, a proud smile cutting into her cheeks. “Naruto-kun taught me how to sneak out. But we had to split up because Iruka-sensei found out.”

“Sneak out…?” She internally groaned, hoping that whatever her two friends were planning on wasn’t too bad. “Oi! Teme!” Naruto’s familiar cackle bounced easily off the abandoned buildings, making Haruno sit up straighter in happiness. “Naruto! Over here!” She called, green eyes crinkling in delight as the blonde boy sprinted into the garden. “Oh man…” He huffed, falling dramatically onto the grass with a wide grin. “Iruka-sensei can be so scary sometimes!”

Sasuke snorted softly. “What are you two even doing?”

“Yesterday you told us to do your hair,” Sakura hummed while grabbing onto Naruto’s shoulders, then gently pulled the boy up. “You...sneaked out of lunch to do my hair?” Sasuke questioned while a defeated expression crossed her face.

_ This might be getting out of hand. _

The young jinchuriki nodded sagely. “Of course we did! This is a top secret mission, y’know.” Meanwhile, Sakura was moving to a stand. Not bothering to ask to enter Sasuke's house as she vanished to most likely find hair ties. Nonetheless, a warm feeling spread throughout her body. She guessed she was happy her friends felt safe enough to do what they wanted.

“Of course,” Sasuke nodded along as he scooched behind her. Soon enough Sakura came back, handing Naruto some ties while she grasped onto her raven locks. “We’re doing braids, a ton of ‘em!”

She hummed with a soft smile. “I know, Uzumaki.”

“And we’re-” he paused. “Why does your hair do that?” Then, she felt grubby hands pat the back of her head. “Naruto!” Sakura scolded, “Sasuke-kun can’t control his hair!”

“I know, but it’s weird!”

It didn’t take long for her two friends to fall into an argument while braiding her hair. Sasuke didn’t mind. It was humouring.

What she did mind though, was the sound of footsteps. They were faint, yet loud enough to alert her.

  
  
  


_ Oh. _

  
  
  
  


_ It’s just him. _

  
  
  
  


“Well, I certainly didn’t expect this.” Kakashi’s smooth voice muttered, standing on the other side of the garden fence as Sakura and Naruto tensed up. Sasuke couldn’t help but stare at him, because the Jonin looked  _ so _ different in Shinobi garb. She could not comprehend how Kakashi’s visible eye hadn’t gotten strained with overuse. Nonetheless, Hatake hopped over the fence easily. Her friends immediately moved to stand in front of her which made her blush slightly in embarrassment. “Who the hell are you?!” Naruto shouted, pointing dramatically at Kakashi while Sakura quietly hissed “Naruto! He’s a Shinobi!”

“Whaaat?” He lowered his hand, squinting in confusion. “Ahh,” Kakashi drawled, his eyebrow slightly raised. Then, Naruto shook his head sharply. “Doesn’t matter! Who are ‘ya?” He went back to pointing yet again.

Hatake sighed loudly (probably purposefully) before leaning on the fence. “Sasuke, I’m here to give you your answer.”

“Hey! Don’t ignore me- wait what?” Naruto swirled around, blue eyes staring deeply into hers. “Sasuke, you know this weirdo?!” He shouted while flailing his arms, only stopping when Haruno roughly shoved her hand on top of his blonde hair. “Naruto, stop being rude!” She whispered, then grabbed onto the younger boy, making him turn around and bow. “I’m so sorry for his rudeness, Shinobi-san.” Sakura smiled politely.

For some reason, this just seemed to make Kakashi even more uncomfortable. “...Don’t worry about it,” he waved his hand dismissively, then looked directly at Sasuke once more. “Next monday at noon, I’ll find you.”

Just like that, he vanished.

“What the  _ hell _ just happened?!” Naruto screeched, standing straight up while crossing his arms. Soon enough, Sakura was  _ also _ crossing her arms as if she hadn’t just forced Naruto to bow. “Yeah, who was that?”

Sasuke internally groaned.

This would take so long to explain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoa whoa whoa! 100 bookmarks? That's insane! Thank you all so much.
> 
> Keep in mind this isn't the Kakashi we normally know. This Kakashi is the one still in ANBU, and has not properly mourned. He's awkward, doesn't know what he's doing, and really would rather not deal with this.
> 
> Btw, I hope to make this story at least 50k+ words. I've never done that before, but it's a goal I look forward to!


	8. Chapter 8

Before she knew it everyone sat at her kitchen table, they looked like they were a council about to discuss politics. It made her cringe just thinking about politics. “You asked a Jounin for help?” Sakura prodded, raising her brow like a scolding sister would. Naruto crossed his arms, nodding his head sagely to her words. “Yeah, I didn’t even know ‘ya could ask a Shinobi for help!”

Sasuke let out a soft sigh, “You usually can’t.”

Haruno tilted her head before a thoughtful frown took over her features. “Is this because you’re in a clan?”

She was slightly surprised, but remained silent for a few seconds. Meanwhile Naruto seemed to catch on, yet stayed quiet. Then, she nodded. “I guess...Well, not anymore.”

“Not anymore?” Naruto mumbled.

Her onyx eyes stared down at the table, completely unsure how she should proceed with this. Sasuke hoped her friends knew, but it seemed like they didn’t. “I’m one of the...last two Uchiha left,” she blurted out. This earned her confused looks. “Konoha wants my eyes to stay...good?” She mumbled quietly, then shook her head. In the end she decided to settle with, “My bloodlimit is important.”

The young girl's green eyes became wide, “You have a bloodlimit?” Meanwhile Naruto squinted before whispering loudly “...What’s a bloodlimit?”

Sakura groaned, her hand smacking her face. “Did you ever pay attention in class?” She muttered tiredly which earned her a pout. “I used to, but class got boring.” Naruto huffed as Sakura sighed softly. “Okay, a bloodlimit is someone who has a Kekkei Genkai.” She explained as Naruto mumbled under his breath “A Kekkei what?”

Haruno seemed to ignore this and continued, “It’s something that only someone with a bloodlimit can get...Like Hinata! Hinata has white eyes right?”

“Yeah, people make fun of her for it!” Naruto exclaimed.

The pink haired girl stared at the Uzumaki before shaking her head, “...Okay, her white eyes are a bloodlimit. They’re called the Byakugan. Only people in her family can have it.”

_ That’s not necessarily true. _

“Ohhh, okay okay I get it! Kind of...Whatever! Then Teme has some weird eye thing too?”

Sasuke sighed in amusement, yet nodded along anyway. “Yes, I have some weird eye thing too.” She hummed, “And since I’m one of the last, Konoha is interested in me.”

“I don’t know much about the Uchiha but...weren’t you guys super powerful? Was that why you asked for help?” Haruno questioned curiously. The image of tou-san flashed in her mind, his tense face glaring into nii-san’s blank one. “Powerful?...” Sasuke closed her onyx eyes, inhaling the scent of her friends. “Yes, the Uchiha were powerful.” She didn’t stutter, for this was the truth. Her clan had great potential, but threw it in the wrong direction. “But I wanted to help you,” she opened her eyes once more, making sure to look at both her friends. “I’m at the top of the class, but I’m no Sensei.”

“Hold on-” Naruto held his hand out in a stop motion. “What do you mean you want to help us? We’re doing fine!” Sakura’s brows twitched as she nodded along to Naruto’s words, then happily spoke up. “Yeah! Even Naruto passed his last test, and I wasn’t beaten in my last Taijutsu match too.”

Sasuke understood their point of view, and understood they felt like they were getting better. But it wasn’t  _ fast _ enough. Naruto needed to protect himself, Sakura had locked potential, and Kakashi was stuck in the past. That all  _ needed  _ to change. In fact, she wished all of Konoha 11 would change. Everyone had powerful abilities, yet they were watered down in light of the storyline.

_ Everything has to change. _

“You guys are doing good, but having a jounin we can ask questions will be helpful.” She crossed her arms, watching a thoughtful look slide onto Sakura’s face. “So when Hatake comes...we’ll be there together, okay?” Sasuke smiled.

Naruto looked over at Sakura, his bright eyes looking into hers before glancing back with an oddly serious expression. “You promise?” He questioned.

Sasuke held back a huff, her hands clenched with nervousness.

“I promise.”

  
  
  
  
  


._.

  
  
  
  
  


After their talk at the kitchen table Sasuke had moved along to start making dinner, while Sakura and Naruto played some game on a paper. She wasn’t sure what game, but they were entertained nonetheless.

At least it was friday. Weekends with no school existed for Academy students here, which was a bit confusing because  _ why _ ? In her past life, weekends were created because of religious reasons. But here? Sasuke didn’t even know if there were religions. Either way she was glad, because that meant it was time to convince Sakura’s parents that she could have a sleepover with her and Naruto.

Well, after feeding her two friends.

“Sasuke-kun! This is so good-” Sakura praised as Naruto shoved his mouth full of chicken dumplings. “Yweah, it’s supwer go-” He spoke with his mouth full, which earned him a gentle scolding from Haruno.

Now this, this is what happiness feels like. No longer did she sit alone, making shitty food for herself alone. Now she had people to cook for. “Haruno, do you think we could meet your parents?” She took a seat beside them, tilting her head as Sakura paused to turn and look at her. “Huh?” The young girl swallowed, then nodded “Yeah! But why?”

“I want to have a sleepover-”

“A sleepover?!” Naruto’s hands slammed down on the table excitedly, a huge grin cutting through his cheeks. “We’re gonna have a sleepover with Sakura-chan?!” He exclaimed, twisting his head to glance at the pink haired girl. Instead of looking happy, Haruno appeared calm. “I-I mean..” she stuttered, “I’m not sure if they would-”

“I’ll talk to them,” Sasuke cut her off, waving her hand dismissively. She needed to see Sakura’s parents for herself, and to know their personalities. Afterall, she couldn’t even remember if Sakura’s parents were truly canon or just from that one movie. “Really?” At this point the young girl brightened up, a soft smile taking over her serious features. Sasuke nodded gently, “Of course.”

Naruto tilted his head, blue eyes squinting in confusion at the whole exchange. “So...are we having a sleepover, or no?” He questioned. Sasuke sighed softly, “We have to ask Sakura’s parents first.” Which earned her a small “Ohhh” from the boy. “Well why didn’t ‘ya just say so?” He mumbled. Sakura let out a quiet giggle at his antics, her green eyes watching him shove another dumpling eagerly into his mouth. Sasuke decided to add, “When you guys are done we could go-” and it suddenly seemed like the dumplings left on the main plate had vanished into thin air. It took her a couple seconds to realize that the Uzumaki had efficiently put them into his cheeks and was already moving to leave the table. Sakura had gotten up as well, following Naruto like a lost puppy.

A sigh of disbelief escaped her lips, slowly standing up from her chair. She felt like tou-san was rolling in his grave.

_ These are my friends, even if they have bad table manners. _

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


“You live here?” Naruto raised an eyebrow, walking up some steps and standing near a normal door. Sakura nodded, walking up the steps and grasping onto the door handle. “I’m sure they’ll like you!...” She didn’t sound so sure of it herself, but in the end she opened the door and let Naruto and Sasuke in first before closing it behind her.

The first thing Sakura did was take off her shoes, quietly urging them to do the same. Naruto understood, and even seemed to understand this wasn’t the time to be messing around. In fact, he looked a little nervous. Sasuke reached over and squeezed his hand, hoping it’d bring some form of comfort. They were led into a dining area, and there sat a woman with papers messily placed on the table. “Ahh, Sakura-chan. You’re finally home?” Her voice was slightly raspy, but wasn’t too hard to listen to.

Sakura paused before quietly mumbling, “I brought some guests, kaa-chan.”

The woman tensed up, then stood from the table and turned to look at the three of them. She had dirty blonde shoulder length hair, and bangs that looked gelled to her forehead. It looked like she was wearing lounging clothes, just a white t-shirt and some shorts. Sasuke couldn’t help but compare her to Sakura’s movie parents, and honestly they looked quite the same. Just more relaxed.

“You brought guests and you didn’t tell me beforehand?” Her mother let out a dramatic sigh, “My dear Sakura-chan, how can I be a good host if you won’t let me get ready?” she moved over to Naruto with a wide grin. “Oh, I didn’t know you were friends with this boy...and is this the Uchiha-kun you used to talk about? Wonderful! I’m so glad you made friends, do you guys want something to drink?”

Nevermind, this woman was  _ not  _ relaxed at all.

“Kaa-chan! You’re going to overwhelm them!” Sakura squeaked, waving her hands around to try and gain her mothers attention. “Right! So sorry,” the woman took a step back and sheepishly smiled. “I’m Mebuki Haruno, but call me what you want!”

Naruto brightly smiled, “Nice to meet ‘ya Mebuki-san! I’m Naruto Uzumaki!” He gently squeezed Sasuke’s hand (which he was still holding). Mebuki shook her head with a laugh, “You don’t need to add the san. I’m Sakura’s mother, not some worker!”

Instead of listening, Sasuke bent over into a half bow then sternly spoke. “Hello Haruno, it’s nice to meet you. I am Sasuke Uchiha.” She was slightly grateful for etiquette lessons tou-san and kaa-san taught her since it certainly was helping now. “Oh my,” Mebuki blinked in surprise before shaking her head once more. “Uchiha-kun, you really don’t have to act so...high class.” She tutted, watching Sasuke move to stand normally. Meanwhile, Sakura had her face hidden behind her hands, appearing to find this whole thing embarrassing. “Sorry Mebuki-san, Sasuke-teme is weird like that!” Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

The older woman chuckled, crossing her arms as she glanced at her daughter. “Sakura, did you guys want to play or just introduce me to them?”

“Actually..” Sakura took her hands away from her face, biting her lip slightly before looking towards Sasuke and Naruto. “I would like to ask if your daughter would like to sleepover at my house tonight,” Sasuke gently cut in, her dark eyes staring into Mebuki’s. “A sleepover? With...you two boys?” The woman paused before her brows furrowed, “No adults either? No, I’m not comfortable with that.”

Sasuke’s eyebrow twitched, but nonetheless she kept her face calm. “Forgive me for butting in, but I have been without adult supervision since the massacre. I know how to take care of myself, and others.” She squeezed Naruto’s hand, feeling the boy glancing at her while Sakura tensed up.

“...Are you speaking back to me?” Mebuki crossed her arms, not even glancing at her daughter who was starting to move behind Naruto. Sasuke had to hold back a smirk, and instead opened her mouth to speak more.

But she was cut off by the sound of the front door.

“Mebuki, I’m home!” A soft male voice echoed throughout the house, and soon enough a tall man entered the dining area. “Why is everything so quiet?” He hummed before a surprised look took over his features. “Oh! Sakura-chan, are these your friends?”

“Kizashi, we were just talking about the topic of sleepovers.” Mebuki raised an eyebrow. “Sa-chan is having a sleepover? Oh, I’ll go get a bag so she can bring her stuff.” The dark pink haired man smiled brightly, already moving to leave the room as his wife cleared her throat. “No, she’s not.”

Sasuke honestly felt a bit awkward. Who knew her friend’s mom would be such an asshole. If anything she was more worried about Sakura’s living conditions now, and how her mom treated her when no one was around.

“Why?” Sakura’s father, who also looked like his movie-counterpart, furrowed his brows then walked over to stand beside Naruto. It was a weird area to stand, and Sasuke made sure to remember that. Even Naruto himself tensed up slightly, but Sakura looked a little less scared. “It’s a sleepover with boys and no adult supervision, of course she won’t go.” Mebuki argued, watching her husband cross his arms.

“Of course she will,” he turned his head to look at the three children in the room with a soft smile. “They’re her friends, and she’s talked about them a lot!” Kizashi suddenly made ‘shooing motions towards them, “Bring your friends upstairs Sa-chan, and grab a bag to pack.”

“..Y-Yes tou-chan!” Sakura smiled at her friends nervously, grabbing onto their shirts then bringing them over towards the stairs as the sounds of the start of a muffled argument faded out behind them. “Sakura-chan? Are you okay?” Naruto whispered, his blue eyes containing worry as she brought them into her room. “I’m okay..” The young girl whispered back, walking over to a closet then getting a backpack out. “You don’t look okay,” Sasuke mumbled, letting go of Naruto’s hand to place it on Sakura’s shoulder. The pink haired girl paused, looking over before slightly smiling. “Tou-chan will take care of it,” was all she said before moving to grab clothes.

Naruto looked over to Sasuke, raising an eyebrow in confusion.

_ Right, he’s probably never seen a family like this before. _

She tilted her head, her midnight locks covering her face as she shook her head. The Uzumaki seemed to understand this because he nodded along and remained quiet.

Soon enough Sakura was dragging them downstairs, clearly trying to ignore her parents arguing even though everyone could hear. Naruto tensed up at the raised voices, keeping his eyes to the ground while grabbing onto Sakura’s hand instead. They all rushed past the adults, quickly putting on their shoes and slamming the door open.

“Holy shit,” Sasuke muttered, watching Sakura close the door once they got outside.

This wasn’t okay, not at all. No child should be living in conditions like that. Sasuke was honestly surprised at how well adjusted Sakura was anyway...or maybe she was just hiding how she truly felt. “Sakura is sleeping over!” Naruto blurted out happily, hopping on his toes as he clapped his hands. “We’re going to have a sleepover with Sakura-chan, Sasuke!” He really seemed to not be aware that now wasn’t the time to be excited, and yet it’s what brought a small nervous smile onto Sakura’s face.

“Yeah,” The young girl whispered, then giggled happily. “I’m going to have a sleepover with my friends!”

  
  
  
  
  


._.

  
  
  
  
  
  


Today wasn’t the day to ask questions, this much Sasuke knew.

She also knew it wasn’t the time to coddle Sakura, and instead she should be trying to distract her. Family issues weren’t...new to Sasuke. She knew what they felt like, in this life and the last, so she had a strong inkling on what to do.

“Why do you make dumplings so much, Sasuke-kun?” Sakura asked while flipping through a scroll. All three of them were once again sitting in tou-san’s library, and Haruno appeared to be enjoying herself. “...Because I like making the dumpling shape?” She answered, and had to wish away the blush on her cheeks. The truth was that she didn’t know how to make a lot of things, but she remembers kaa-san making them for tou-san a lot. Kaa-san made them so many times, and she could easily recall the image of nii-san helping her stuff them. It was...a bittersweet image.

A loud slam interrupted her daydreaming, making both Sakura and herself twist their heads in surprise. “Naruto?!” Sakura squeaked, looking at the young boy who had his hands on the chabudai. His face looked twisted up, and his lips were nudged between his teeth. The Uzumaki looked like...he was in pain. Immediately, Sasuke sat up and scooched closer to him with worry clear in her onyx eyes. “Uzumaki? Are you okay?” She whispered softly, glancing at Sakura who was staring at Naruto with a frown.

He mumbled to himself before his hand shakily reached down and placed a scroll on the chabudai. “Were you reading this?” She asked, picking up the scroll and glancing towards Sakura again. The pink haired girl scooted over beside her, green eyes peering into the scroll.

_ Hashirama Senju was married to Mito Uzumaki, who was from Uzushiogakure. Uzushiogakure housed the Uzumaki clan known for their- _

Just reading the first sentence made Sasuke frown, handing the rest of the scroll over to Sakura and gently placing her hand onto his shoulder. “Uzumaki..?” She whispered, watching tears roll down his whiskered cheeks. “Jiji told me he didn’t know..!” He choked out, his body starting to curl up as a cry escaped his lips. “But I have a- I have a clan!” He hiccuped, trying to wipe away some snot. Sasuke slowly wrapped her arms around him, leaving him space to pull away if he desired. Sakura’s face twisted up in sadness and regret, putting the scroll to the side. “Oh, Naruto..” she mumbled, before slowly joining the hug. There he sat, crying into his friends while being so utterly  _ confused _ . “I don’t get it..!” he whimpered, hands clutching onto her shirt like a lifeline. His voice seemed to crack as he sobbed to himself, his grip becoming tighter and tighter, and yet his cries were becoming quieter and quieter.

“..Why-...Why would he lie..?” He whispered tiredly.

All they could do was hold him, because no one truly knew.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait guys. My beta vanished on me and I lost motivation because of that. If you see any mistakes I'm so sorry :( I just have no one to look over my writing anymore. Nonetheless, here's a new chapter! I usually add some facts here about this fic, so I'll do that now.
> 
> Sakura's relationship with her mother is very strained, and she prefers to hang around her dad. I have purposefully kept certain things a secret, like Sasuke's past life, and that isn't going to be revealed all in one go. I'd also like to inform you that Sasuke won't have long hair, and will probably keep it the duckbutt way.


End file.
